sS> 


Besea' 


cV^  L'Wani 


^-^-rBAV25   .S73 


LB 
1525 
S73 


Southern  Branch 
of  the 

University  of  California 

Los  Angeles 

Form  L-1 

\585 


APR 


is  DUE  on  the  last  date  stamped  below. 


^X. 


^n 


'l^'' 


JAi^^ 


'HA!?  4 


t954 


5m-8,'21 


"The  Aldine  Series  of  Readers 

By  Frank  E.  Spaulding,  Superintendent  of  Schools,  Newton,  Mass.,  and 
Miss  Catherine  T.  Bryce,  Supervisor  of  Primary  Schools,  Newton,  Mass. 


The  Aldine  Primer   . 

The  Aldine  First  Reader 

The  Aldine  Second  Reader 

The  Aldine  Third  Reader 

The  Aldine  Fourth  Reader 

The  Aldine  Fifth  Reader 

Learning  to  Read  (A  Manual  for  Teachers) 


The  Aldine  Reading  and  Phonic  Chart  (combined)  with  stand 

The  Aldine  Phonic  Chart  (separate)  with  stand 

These  charts  with  stand  will  be  sent,  express  charges  paid,  to  any  ad- 
dress in  the  United  States,  at  the  prices  here  given.  Special  terms  to 
Schools  and  Boards  of  Education  for  quantities. 

The  Aldine  Rhyme  Charts,  containing  all  the  rhymes  in  the  Aldine 
Primer,  i6  Nos.,  each  9  x  24  inches  (per  set)      . 

Phonic  Cards,  each  5x8  inches  (per  set  of  23)      . 

Sight  Word  Cards,  Primer  Set,  each  5x8  inches  (per  set  of  95) 

Rhyme  Cards,  each  containing  the  17  rhymes  used  in  the  Primer, 
5x7  inches    (per  hundred)        .  .  .  .  .  .   "       . 

Seat  Work  Cards.     No.  One  contains  all  the  words  of  Rhymes  i,  2, 
3,   4,    5,    6,    7,    and    1 1    in   the   Rhyme   Cards,  each   9  x  12  inches 
(per   hundred)  ......... 

No.  Two  contains  all  the  words  of  Rhymes  8,  9,  10,  12,  and  i  3  in  the 
Rhyme  Cards,  each  9x12  inches  (per  hundred)  .  .  .  . 


$  .32 
.32 
.42 
.48 
.65 
.75 
.60 

10.00 
7.00 


.60 
.25 
.65 


.60 


2.00 
2.00 


The  prices  given  above  are  subject  to  our  usual  discount  on  supplies 
for  introduction  and  exchange 


Newson  and  Company 
PUBLISHERS 


BOSTON 


NEW    YORK 


CHICAGO 


THE    ALPINE    READERS 

LEARNING  TO  READ 

A  Manual  for  Teachers 


BY 

FRANK    E.    SPAULDING 

SUPERINTENDENT    OF    SCHOOLS,     NEWTON,     MASS. 
AND 

CATHERINE    T.    BRYCE 

SUPERVISOR    OF    PRIMARY    SCHOOLS,     NEWTON,     MASS. 


NEWSON    &    COMPANY 

NEW    YORK 


Copyright,  1907,  by 
KEWSON  &  COMPANY. 


1178 


LB 
S  03 

INTRODUCTION" 

The  term  "  method  "  is  used  in  this  Manual  for  want 
of  a  better  one.  Here  it  has  not,  however,  the  quite 
usual  meaning  of  an  elaborately  wrought  out  system  of 
formal  devices.  It  refers  mainly  to  the  sum  of  principles 
and  processes  whose  application  has  been  found  most 
effective  in  accomplishing  a  definite  result,  teaching  chil- 
dren to  read  independently. 

The  method  described  is  not  the  outs-row th  of  untried 

theories  of  teaching  reading.     It  is  rather  the  description  of 

certain  processes  of  accomplishing  certain  results,  processes 

founded  on   sound    psychological  principles,   which   have 

been  wrought  out  and  perfected  in  scores  of  schoolrooms 

during  the  last  six  years. '  These  processes  have  not  been 

simply  tested   in  a  few  exercises,  with  a   few  children ; 

several  thousands  of  children  have  been  taught  constantly 

and  solely  in  accordance  with  principles  and  plans  set  forth 

in  this  Manual.     There  is  not  a  plan  nor  a  device  herein 

described,  from  the  least  to  the  most    important,  whose 

practicability    and    worth    have    not    been     abundantly 

demonstrated. 

The  size  of  this  Manual  is  not  due  to  any  difficulty  in 

iii 


iv  INTRODUCTION 

the  method  described  ;  the  method  is  exceedingly  easy  both 
to  comprehend  and  to  apply.  The  Manual  is  large  be- 
cause in  it  the  authors  have  tried  to  make  every  least  step 
plain  and  to  give  an  abundance  of  helpful  suggestions, 
so  that  teachers  of  little  or  no  professional  training  may 
learn  how  to  teacli  reading,  the  foundation  of  all  school 
work,  successfully.  Processes  and  methods  are  not  de- 
scribed merely  with  the  direction  to  follow  them ;  the  rea- 
sons for  every  process,  for  the  use  of  every  least  device 
even,  are  fully  discussed.  This  phase  of  the  subject  has 
been  elaborated  in  the  firm  conviction  that  reading  can  be 
taught  successfully  only  by  teachers  fully  intelligent  con- 
cerning the  mental  processes  involved,  the  purpose  and 
the  effect  of  the  methods  employed.  Such  intelligence  is 
especially  necessary  that  teachers  may  be  quick  to  perceive 
when  the  purpose  which  any  process  or  device  is  intended 
to  serve  has  been  accomplished. 

The  manuscript  for  this  Manual  has  been  read  critically 
by  several  teachers  and  others,  some  familiar  and  some 
unfamiliar  with  the  method  described.  It  is  hoped  that 
the  subject  is  presented  with  sufficient  clearness  and  com- 
pleteness. Communications  regarding  any  difficulties  or 
questions  whose  solution  or  answer  cannot  be  found  in 
the  Manual,  are  invited  by  the  authors. 

The  working  out  of  this  system  of  reading  has  been 
possible  only  through  the  cooperation,  always  sympathetic, 
intelligent,  and  enthusiastic,  of  many  teachers  and  princi- 
pals in  the  public  schools  of  Passaic,  N.J.,  where  the  .sys- 


INTRODUCTION 


tern  originated,  and  of  Newton,  Mass.,  where  the  system 
has  been  developed  and  perfected.  Tlie  authors  take  this 
opportunity  of  expressing  their  sincere  appreciation  of  the 
services  of  these  teachers  and  principals. 


CONTENTS 

CHAPTSB  PAGE 

I.     The  Method  Explained 1 

1.  Stories 2 

2.  Rhymes 4 

3.  Pictures 7 

4.  Dramatizing 8 

5.  Objects  and  Objective  Teaching 1:] 

6.  Sight  Words  .         .         .         .         .         •         .         .         .15 

7.  Phonics 16 

8.  Consonants 22 

9.  Vowels  and  Type  "Woids 26 

10.   New  Words 34 

n.    Drill 37 

12.  Reading 38 

13.  Expression      .        .        . 49 

II.     Books,  Charts,  and  Other  Materials    .        .        .        .  .57 

1.  The  Reading  Chart  and  the  First  Books       ...  57 

2.  Cards 59 

3.  Rhyme  Charts 61 

4.  The  Phonic  Chart 62 

5.  Script  and  Print 68 

6.  Seat  Work 69 

7.  Supplementary  Reading 71 

III.  The  Primer,  pages  1-4 ;  The  Chart,  page  2       .         .         .  7-"> 

IV.  The  Puni eh.  pages  5-9  ;  The  Chart,  pages  3-4  .         ,         .  82 

vii 


Vlll 


CONTENTS 


CIIAPTEP. 

V. 

The 

VI. 

The 

VII. 

The 

VIII. 

The 

IX. 

The 

X. 

The 

XL 

The 

XII. 

The 

xiir. 

The 

XIV. 

The 

XV. 

The 

XVI. 

The 

XVII. 

The 

XVIII. 

The 

XIX. 

The 

XX. 

The 

XXI. 

The 

XXII. 

The 

XXIII. 

The 

Primei!,  pages  10-14 
PuiMKK,  pages  15-17 
Pkimeh,  pages  18-23 
PiuMEit,  pages  24-30 
Primer,  pages  3-3-30 
Primer,  pages  40-46 
Primer,  pages  47-55 
Primer,  pages  56-64 
Primer,  pages  67-88 
Primer,  pages  91-103 
Primer,  pages  104-108 
Primer,  pages  111-123 


The  Chart,  pages  .5-6 
The  Chart,  jjages  7-8 
The  Chart,  pages  9-10 
The  Chart,  pages  11-13 
The  Chart,  pages  14-15 
The  Chart,  pages  16-17 
The  Chart,  pages  18-21 


Primer,  pages  124-138    . 

First  Reader,  pages  3-5;  The  Chart,  pages  22-24 

First  Reader,  pages  6-10;  The  Chart,  pages  25-27 

First  Reader,  pages  11-14   . 

First  Reader,  page  15  to  the  end 

Second  and  Third  Readers 

Phonic  Chart       .... 


88 
95 
101 
108 
114 
121 
127 
135 
138 
143 
147 
150 
1-55 
1-59 
164 
168 
171, 
177 
183 


LEARMNG  TO   READ 


CHAPTER   I  ' 

THE  METHOD  EXPLAINED 

The  method  of  teaching  children  to  read,  which  is  here 
presented,  although  extremely  simple  and  entirely  natural, 
cannot  be  adequately  characterized  in  a  single  word,  like 
"phonic,"  "rhyme,"  "dramatic,"  "word,"  "sentence," 
"  thought,"  "  action  "  ;  it  contains  something  of  all  these 
ideas,  and  more.  Yet  it  is  by  no  means  an  eclectic  method 
in  the  sense  that  it  embodies  merely  "  the  best  ideas " 
selected  from  all  methods ;  it  consists  of  a  harmonious 
and  progressive  series  of  efforts,  of  means  and  devices 
found  most  effective  in  solving  the  elementary  reading 
problem. 

But  a  brief  characterization  of  the  method  is  not  impor- 
tant, nor  even  desirable.  It  is  important  that  the  teacher 
w^ho  would  teach  in  accordance  with  this  method,  and  who 
would  secure  the  best  results  possible  in  this  way,  should 
understand  clearly  and  appreciate  thoroughly  the  purpose 
and  the  value  of  the  various  processes,  means,  and  materials, 
whose  use  is  described  in  detail  in  subsequent  chapters. 
To  facilitate  this  understanding  and  appreciation  is  the 
object  of  this  and  the  following  chapter. 


LEARNING  TO  READ. 


1.  Stories 


The  story  with  which  the  teacher  introduces  each  rhyme 
that  the  children  are  to  commit  to  memory  is  not  a  mere 
device  for  making  what  might  be  a  hard  and  disagreeable 
task  easy  and  pleasant  for  the  child.  The  story  does  serve 
this  purpose,  but  it  does  much  more  than  that.  It  arouses 
1  What  the  *^^^  child's  interest;  it  attracts  and  holds  the 
story  does  child's  attention ;  it  stimulates  and  directs  the 
child's  thought ;  in  short,  the  oral  story  does  for  the  child 
what  the  printed  story  must  do  later.  By  teaching  the 
child  to  listen  well,  the  teacher  is  preparing  him  to  read 
well. 

As  the  content  of  the  stories  is  in  harmony  with  the 
rhymes  that  they  introduce  and  the  reading  matter  that 
follows  the  rhymes,  they  not  only  facilitate  the  memoriz- 
ing of  the  rhymes  —  which  the  child  does  with  a  few 
repetitions  —  but  they  put  the  child  in  the  most  favorable 
attitude  for  really  reading;  that  is,  associating  appropriate 
thought  with  the  printed  form  of  the  rhymes  and  the 
sentence-stories  that  follow  them. 

While  the  child  is  learning  to  read  the  rhyme  and  the 

simple  stories,  the  teacher's  story  should  be  kept  alive  in 

2.  The         t^6  child's  consciousness  by  frequent  repetition 

corymust    ^^^  reference;    thus  is  insured  the  presence  in 

be  kept  i  •   i     i 

alive  the  child's  mind  of  the  material  out  of  which  he 

must  construct  the  simple  thoughts  which  the  rhyme  and 
sentence-stories  are  intended  to  evoke. 


THE  METHOD  EXPLAINED  3 

So,  at  the  very  outset,  while  the  child  is  acqiuring  the 
first  of  his  stock  of  "  sight  words,"  he  is  getting  into  the 
reader's  frame  of  mind,  is  learning  really  to  read.     And  he 
is  doing  both  in  a  most  natural  and  agreeable  way  —  a 
way  that  represents  no  wearisome  contrast  with  his  most 
interesting  out-of -school  experiences.      Learning  3.  Leam- 
to  read  in  this  way  appeals  to  the  child  as  a  real  ^fgai  ^T 
pleasure ;   he  enters  upon  the  undertaking  with  Pleasure 
the  enthusiasm  of  his  play  and  recreation.     It  is  an  en- 
thusiasm which  does  not  easily  tire. 

But  in  order  to  arouse  this  enthusiasm,  to  get  and  to 
keep  the  child  in  the  right  frame  of  mind,  the  teacher 
must  tell  her  story  well.     She  must  enter  heart-  4.  The 
ily  into  the  spirit  of  the  story ;  she  must  be  her-  Jl°wen  ^^^^ 
self  enthusiastic  ;  she  must  express  her  spirit  and  ^°^^ 
enthusiasm  in  her  voice  and  manner.     Only  thus  can  she 
hope  to  arouse  and  direct  the  thoughts  and  feelings  of  her 
pupils. 

As  a  rule,  the  story  should  be  told,  not  read  from  the 
Manual.  Every  primary  teacher,  at  least,  should  be  able 
to  tell  a  story  to  children  effectively ;  this  is  an  accom- 
plishment almost  indispensable  in  her  art.  If  you,  as 
teacher,  have  never  told  a  story,  begin  at  once. 

The  stories  as  given  in  subsequent  chapters  need  not, 
of  course,   be   told   word  for  word ;   it  is   only 
the  rhyme  that  is  to  be  learned  verbatim.    But  purpose  of 
whether  you  tell  the  stories  or  whether  you  read 
them  —  for  they  can  be  made  effective  by  reading  —  do 


4  LEARNING  TO   READ 

not  lose  sight  of  their  purpose;  do  see  to  it  that  they 
accomplish  their  purpose.  If  your  children  fail  to  respond, 
if  they  fail  to  become  interested,  if  they  fail  to  enter  into 
the  thought  and  the  spirit  of  the  story,  3'ou  have  failed  to 
secure  the  result  for  which  the  story  was  used.  Study  the 
cause  of  your  failure  —  it  will  not  be  found  in  the  story 
itself  —  and  try  again. 

2.  Rhymes 

Rhymes,  introduced  by  appropriate  stories,  furnish  the 
child  the  most  effective  means  of  acquiring  an  initial  stock 
1.  A  read-  of  "sight  words."  By  memorizing  rhymes  and 
uiary''^  associatiug  the  spoken  with  the  printed  and 
throuff^h  written  forms  of  the  words,  in  accordance  with 
rhymes  later  detailed  directions,  the  child  can  build 
up  a  reading  vocabulary  more  than  twice  as  fast  as  by  the 
usual  "  word,"  or  "  sentence,"  or  "  object "  method. 

But  the  facility  afforded  for  the  acquiring  of  a  vocab- 
ulary is  not  the  only,  nor  indeed  the  most  important, 
advantage  of  the  rhyme.  Through  the  medium  of  the 
rhyme  the  child  learns  each  word  in  use,  in  relation  to 
2  Words  other  words,  in  a  use  and  relation  which  he  under- 
L'^fwt        stands  and  of  which  he  is  conscious  when  he  is 

in  tneir 

^s3  learning  the  written  and  printed  forms  of  the 

word  ;  thus,  from  the  outset  he  associates  with  the  book 
word  a  spoken  word  which  means  something  to  him.  When 
he  reads  this  word  in  connection  with  other  words,  he  at 
once  associates  with  it  not  its  sound  alone  but  its  meaning. 


THE  METHOD  EXPLAINED  5 

Building  up  a  vocabulary  of  disconnected  words,  associ- 
ating tlie  sound  of  a  single  word  with  its  printed  form,  is 
the  best  possible  preparation  for  that  all  too  prevalent  kind 
of  school  reading  which  consists  only  in  sounding  mentally 
or  aloud  the  printed  words  —  mechanical  reading. 

There  is  a  third  advantage  of  the  rhyme,  properly  used, 
which  is  perhaps  the  greatest  of  all.  It  gives  the  child  at 
once  a  measure  of  independence  in  his  reading ;  it  enables 
and  encourages  him  to  make  use  of  what  he  already  knows 
in  learning  more,  a  most  important  habit  in  gen-  3.  The 
eral.  This  advantage  comes  about  in  this  way.  abies^the' 
When  the  child  has  committed  a  rhyme  to  mem-  ?"P'1*° 

<j  help  him- 

ory  thoroughly  — ■  and  this  commitment  should  s^if 
always  be  thorough  — and  has  then  learned  to  point  word 
by  word  to  the  printed  words  as  he  repeats  the  rhyme, 
associating  each  spoken  word  with  its  printed  form,  he  is 
prepared  to  read  the  sentence-stories  which  follow  the 
rhyme  and  which  are  composed  of  words  already  used  in 
the  rhyme.  If  he  comes  upon  a  word  which  he  does  not 
recognize,  as  will  frequently  happen,  he  must  not  be  told 
the  word  by  the  teacher ;  he  must  go  back  to  the  rhyme, 
repeating  and  pointing  word  by  word  until  he  comes  to  the 
word  which  he  did  not  recog^nize  in  the  reading;.  His  oral 
memory  of  the  rhyme  enables  him  to  name  the  Avord  at 
once. 

If,  in  reading  stories  that  occur  in  the  Chart  or  Primer 
after  several  rhymes  have  been  learned,  the  pupil  comes 
upon    a  word  which  he    does    not   recognize    and   wliich 


6  LEARNING  TO   READ 

may  not  be  in  the  last  rhyme  learned,  he  must  hunt 
through  the  preceding  rhjanes,  as  indicated  above,  imtil  he 

4.  How  comes  upon  the  desired  word.  Since  all  words 
the  rhymes  from  the  beginning  are  used  repeatedly  as  the 
reading  progresses,  a  constant  incidental  review  is  kept  up. 
And  there  is  no  need  of  failure  on  the  part  of  the  pupil 
because  he  has  forgotten  some  word  which  he  had  once 
learned ;  he  has  the  power  to  find  that  word,  unaided. 
With  this  use  of  the  rhymes  pupils  soon  become  able  to 
read  silently  at  their  seats,  without  constantly  interrupting 
the  teacher  for  a  word. 

That  the  rhymes  may  be  used  in  this  way  —  and  on  no 
account  should  the  teacher  neglect  this  use  of  them  —  they 
must  be  kept  before  the  children  for  reference,  as  they  are 
,   ^^  learned  one  after  another.    They  may  be  so  kept 

5.  Rhymes  ^j  j  i 

to  be  kept  on  the  blackboards,  or  better,  to  save  blackboard 
pupils  for  space,  hung  about  the  room  on  charts  within  easy 
reference      ^^^^^  ^^  ^y^^  children.     It  is  well  for  each  child 

to  have  a  rhyme  card,  on  which  are  all  the  rhymes  of  the 
primer.     This  serves  for  reference  in  seat  work. 

When  a  child  comes  to  a  word  which  he  does  not  recog- 
nize, the  quick  and  easy  way  for  the  teacher  is  to  tell  him 
the  word.     That  is  not  the  right  way,  however,  —  not  the 

6.  How  the  profitable  way  in  the  long  run  ;  and  it  must  not 
neir'""'  ^=*®  followed.  The  child  m.ust  find  out  the  word 
himself  fgj.  l^iniself  from  the  rhyme.  Of  course  he  will 
need  help  at  first  in  doing  this,  which,  altogether,  will 
make  it  seem   a   slow  process   of  arriving   at   a   simple 


THE  METHOD  EXPLAINED  7 

result.  But  it  is  a  process  that  pays  richly  iu  the 
end.  Pupils  soon  acquire  the  habit  of  depending  on 
themselves,  of  finding  out  their  own  Avords  without  re- 
course to  the  teacher.  This  habit  established  at  the  out- 
set will  prove  of  untold  value  later  when  we  come  to  the 
use  of  phonics.  The  formation  of  it  is  dwelt  upon  and 
insisted  upon  here  and  continually  because  it  is  one  of 
the  secrets  of  the  success  of  the  method  here  described. 

3.  Pictures 

Pictures  adorn  the  pages  of  chart  and  books.  But  adorn- 
ment is  only  an  incident ;  it  is  not  the  real  function  which 
the  pictures  are  intended  to  serve.  They  are  an  integral 
part  of  material  and  method  and  should  be  so  ,   ^ 

^  ,  ,  1.  The  real 

used.  They  tell  the  child  the  pith  of  the  story  function  of 
which  the  teacher  tells,  introducing  the  rhyme, 
or  they  tell  what  the  child  is  to  read  from  the  text.  They 
attract  and  hold  the  child's  attention;  they  arouse  his  inter- 
est and  enthusiasm ;  they  stimulate  and  direct  his  thought. 
You  must  not,  as  teacher,  look  upon  the  attraction  of 
the  picture  as  a  distraction.  You  must  not  grudge  the 
time  and  attention  the  child  is  disposed  to  give  to  the 
picture,  as  though  it  were  time  stolen  from  the  study  of 
the  text.  You  must  not  be  constantly  repressing  the 
child's  interest  in  the  picture,  pulling  him  forcibly  away 
from  it  to  a  study  of  the  text.  You  would  not  think  of 
trying  to  make  the  child  read  while  you  were  telling  him 
your  interesting   story  preparatory  to  his  reading;   you 


8  LEARNING  TO  READ 

would  not  think  of  giving  him  only  a  little  interesting 

snatch  of  your  story,  and  then  forcing  his  attention  away 

to  the  reading;  you  tell  your  story  through  to 

to  be  read     the  end  and  seek  to  enlist  the  child's  undivided 

enjoye    j^^^-gj-^^^Q^-^   ^^^  interest   for   the   story.     Pursue 

the  same  course  with  the  picture.  Let  the  child  abandon 
himself  to  it ;  study  it  yourself  and  enjoy  it  with  him ; 
stimulate  his  interest  and  enthusiasm ;  direct  his  observa- 
tion and  thought  by  questions  and  suggestions;  so  help 
the  child  to  grasp  the  story,  not  merely  to  see  the  separate 
objects  and  colors,  which  the  picture  contains. 

All  this  study  of  the  picture  is  in  preparation  for  an 
appreciative  reading  of  the  text.  When  the  child  has  been 
allowed  and  assisted  to  read  the  story  of  the  picture,  he 
3  Readine  ^^  then  ready  and  eager  to  read  the  story  of  the 
the  picture    text.     The  reading^  of  that  will  usually  add  to 

prepares 

for  reading   and   Verify  or  modify  the   picture  story.     This 
will  necessitate  reference  to  the  picture  during 
and  after  the  reading  of  the  text ;  such  reference  should 
be  freely  allowed  and  encouraged. 

4.  Dramatizing 

Dramatizing  is  play,  recreation,  agreeable  and  healthful 
exercise  of  the  mind  and  body ;  and  as  such  it  is  of  no 
,    _  little  value  in  the  economy  of  the  day's  work, 

1.  Drama-  ... 

tizing  not      But  dramatizing  is  much  more  than  a  pleasant 

mere  play  .  , . ,  .  .        ,  .  ,  , 

pastime  ;  like  pictures,  it  plays  an  integral  and 
important  role  in  the  successful  teaching  of  reading. 


THE  METHOD  EXPLAINED  9 

Like  the  picture  and  the  story,  dramatizing   prepares 
the  child  to  read  appreciatively  and  expressively.     Dram- 
atizing is,  indeed,  more  than  a  mere  preparation  for  read- 
ino;;  dramatizing  is  reading  in  the  fullest  sense.     Instead 
of  simply  thinking  and  picturing  in  their  imag-  2.  Drama- 
ination   the  thoughts  and  ideas  of   the  printed  Jomp^iete 
page,  the  children,  in  dramatizing,  make  those  reading 
thoughts   and   ideas   live.      Instead    of   nierelv  thinking 
about  the  actors  in  the  story  which  they  read,  the  chil- 
dren,   in   dramatizing,    become    those  actors    themselves. 
Instead  of  reading  what  the  actors  of  the  stor}'  do  and 
say,  the  children,  as  actors,  do  and  say  those  things  them- 
selves.    This  is  realistic  reading. 

Successful  dramatizing  requires  that  the  child  forget 
himself,  throw  himself  into  his  part,  really  become  for  the 
time  the  actor  whom  he  represents.  Under  these  circum- 
stances the  child's  acts  and  his  speech  are  natural  and 
expressive. 

Most  children  in  the  first  and  second   grades  take  to 
dramatizing  readily  and  naturally,  when   the  conditions 
are  right.     If   they  are  stiff   and  awkward   in  3  Drama- 
speech    and    movement,  if   they   cannot   forget  uraito^^^ 
themselves,  it   is   probably    due  to  the  conven-  children 
tionality  and  formality  of  the  schoolroom.    Let  the  teacher 
show  the  way  by  breaking  through  all    unnecessary  re- 
straints, forgetting  herself,  and   taking  enthusiastic  part 
in  the  dramatization,  and  the  children  will  quickly  catch 
the  spirit  of  it  all 


10  LEARNING   TO   READ 

Proper  preparation  for  dramatizing,  of  the  kind  needed 
in  school,  does  not  consist  in  selecting  certain  cliildren  to 
take  certain  parts  and  having  each   one  memorize  word 

4  Pro  er  ^'^^^  word  wliat  lie  is  to  say ;  the  results  of  such 
prepara-  preparation  can  hardly  be  anything  else  than 
drama-         wooden.       Suitable   preparation    consists  rather 

iziiig  in  filling  all  the  children  so  full  of  the  story,  by 

graphic  telling,  that  they  instinctively  want  to  act  it  out. 
Parts  are  then  quickly  chosen  or  assigned  and  the  little 
actors  carry  out  the  ideas  and  the  spirit  of  the  story. 
Their  language,  like  their  acts,  should  be  in  harmony  with 
the  original  ideas  and  spirit,  but  need  not  usually  be  a 
verbatim  repetition  of  the  language  used  in  the  story ; 
spontaneity  and  originality  of  expression  are  to  be  en- 
couraged. 

Children's  first  dramatizations  are  of  the  rhymes  and 
the  stories  told  them  by  the  teacher  in  introducing  the 
rhymes.  They  will,  of  course,  need  considerable  help  and 
suggestion  at  first ;  the  teacher  must  be  very  careful,  how- 
ever, only  to  help  and  to  suggest.    The  children  must  take 

5  The  their  parts  spontaneously,  not  merely  do  and  say 
teacher         what  the  tcaclicr  tells  them,  or  no  real  drama- 

only  to 

help  and  tizatiou  is  sccurcd.  The  teacher's  help  and  sug- 
sugges  gestion  can  be  gradually  withdrawn  until,  after 
some  months,  the  children  will  make  the  necessary  ar- 
rangements for  the  exercise  and  carry  out  their  parts 
almost  unaided.  After  they  have  become  aljle  to  read 
with  some  fluency,  they  can  read   their  story  for  them- 


THE   METHOD   EXPLAINED  11 

selves  and  then  dramatize  it  witli  little  assistance.  In 
the  later  chapters  detailed  suggestions  are  given  the 
teacher  for  arranging  and  directing  the  dramatization  of 
certain  stories. 

The  chief  advantages  of  dramatizing,  then,  as  a  part  of 
the  process  of  teaching  children  to  read  are   these.       In 
dramatizing,    the   children    grasp    not   words    alone,    but 
ideas;    and    they  feel    as   well    as   understand,  e.  Advan- 
Having  dramatized  a  story,  they  are  in  condi-  ^rama°^ 
tion  to  read   it  with    expression,  which    means  ^i^ing 
with  understanding  and  with  feeling.     On  the  other  hand, 
having  really  read  a  selection  suitable  for  dramatization, 
that  is,  having  fully  understood  it  and  felt  it,  they  are  pre- 
pared to  dramatize  it.    Dramatizing  thus  serves  as  a  prepa- 
ration for  and  a  culmination  of  the  best  primary  reading. 

One  emphatic  caution  will  not  be  out  of  place.     Xhe 
teacher  must  not  make  the  easy  mistake  of  conducting  her 
work  as  though  the  dramatic   product   of   the  children's 
efforts  were  the  end  sought.     A  good  dramatiza-  ^  ^^ 
tion  is,  indeed,  very  entertaining  to  spectators,  dramatic 
But  the  entertainment  of  spectators  is  not  the  not  the  end 
purpose ;  the  purpose  of  dramatizing  is  the  bene-  ^°"^ 
fit  of  the  participants,  the  children.      That  the  children 
may  get    the  most  benefit  from  dramatizing,  all    should 
take  part.     If  any  are  to  take  part  more  prominently  or 
more  frequently  than  others,  they  should   be  those  who 
have  the  least  talent  for  the  exercise,  for  such  are  prob- 
ably the  ones  most  in  need  of  its  benefits. 


12  LEARNING   TO   READ 

Perhaps  it  is  superfluous  to  suggest  that  this  does  not 
mean  that  the  teacher  should  divide  up  the  time  and  the 
parts  mechanically,  letting  each  child  take  his  turn  in 
regular  order.  Quite  the  contrary.  In  starting  dramati- 
zation in  her  school  and  in  securing  the  participation  of 
the  right  children  under  right  conditions,  the  teacher  must 
exercise  the  greatest  tact,  born  of  quick  and  sympathetic 
^appreciation  of  the  mental  attitude  of  each  child.  She 
„  „         ^  must  be  careful  not  to  make  the  diffident,  re- 

8.  Tact  and      ...  .  . 

patience  tiring  child  self-conscious  and  awkward  by  requir- 
ing him  to  take  part ;  even  the  formal  suggestion 
that  he  take  a  part  may  unfit  him  to  do  so.  The  teacher 
must  know  how  to  wait  patiently  and  watchfully  for  the 
time  to  come  —  as  it  surely  will  come  —  when  such  a 
child  in  self-forgetfulness  will  enter  spontaneously  into 
both  the  spirit  and  the  action  of  the  dramatization.  The 
teacher  must  also  know  how  to  deal  with  the  overforward, 
the  "  smart "  child,  the  child  who  "  knows  too  much," 
who  doesn't  enter  into  the  j)lay,  but  plays  with  the  wdiole 
situation  if  he  deigns  to  take  part  at  all.  This  child,  like 
his  retiring  antipode,  is  under  no  circumstances  to  be 
compelled  to  take  part  and  to  take  part  in  the  right  spirit; 
that  is  something  which  the  teacher  cannot  compel,  and 
she  will  do  well  not  to  attempt  it.  The  smart  boy  usually 
needs  only  to  be  quietly  ignored.  The  time  will  soon 
come,  under  this  treatment,  when  he,  too,  in  self-forget- 
fulness will  be  eager  to  take  part  in  the  right  spirit.  Any 
teacher  will  always  find  in  her  class  a  sufficient  number  of 


THE   METHOD   EXPLAINED  13 

average,  normal  cliildren,  who  will  be  ready  to  enter  into 
and  to  carry  out  the  plan's  with  her.  When  the  excep- 
tional children  finally  come  into  the  play  spontaneously, 
she  can  easily  arrange  that  they  take  part  sufficiently  often 
to  make  up  for  any  opportunities  that  they  may  have 
lost. 

Under  no  circumstances  should  the  teacher  seek  to 
.-ecure  a  finished  and  smooth  production  by  dramatizing 
the  same  thing  over  and  over  with  the  same  parts  taken 
by  the  same  children  each  time.  It  is  well  to  repeat  a 
dramatization,  but  it  should  usually  be  with  dif-  9.  a  fin- 
Cerent  participants  or  with  changed  parts.  Let  duiton'^not 
there  be  a  wholesome  rivalry,  as  there  should  be  desirable 
in  reading,  to  see  which  can  interpret  and  render  a  part 
best. 

5.    Objects  and  Objective  Teaching 

Many  teachers  of  beginners  in  reading  are  accustomed 
to  surround  themselves  with  a  great  variety  of  objects, 
trying  to  present  to  the  child  the  objective  representation 
of  every  written  or  printed  word.  These  objects  may  serve 
an  excellent  purpose,  or  they  may  be  chiefly  a  hindrance  ; 
at  most,  their  profitable  use  is  limited.  We  read  not  with 
objects  but  with  ideas. 

If  a  child  has  never  seen  nor  had  immediate  experience 
of  a  given  object,  he  can  have  no  adequate  idea  of  that 
object.      Also  a  non-English-speaking  child  may 
have  a  clear  idea  of  a  certain  object,  but  as  he  taryobjec- 

*  tiivs  ^97ork 

does  not  know  the  spoken  English  word  which 


14  LEARNING  TO  READ 

stands  for  that  object,  the  teacher  unaided  has  no  ready 
and  sure  means  of  producing  in  his  mind  the  desired  idea. 
With  children  of  these  types,  objects  should  certainly  be 
used  when  possible  ;  pictures  are  the  best  substitutes  for 
objects. 

The  subject-matter  of  the  Aldine  Readers,  the  Primer, 
the  First  and  Second  books,  is  of  a  character  such  as  most 
English-speaking  children  have  experienced  on  entering 
school.  In  fact,  the  ideas  presented  have  been  selected 
with  great  care  as  ideas  which  are  among  the  earliest 
acquired  and  most  frequently  used  by  little  children.  Such 
ideas  as  may  prove  to  be  foreign  to  any  children  should  be 
objectively  presented. 

The  argument  here  is  not  in  opposition  to  the  use  of 
objects  and  objective  teaching  in  the  first  steps  in  reading. 
Quite  the  contrary ;  objective  work,  of  the  right  kind, 
can  profitably  be  carried  much  farther  than  it  usually  is. 
We  wish  merely  to  point  out  clearly  the  value  and  the 
limits  of  value  of  a  certain  customary  kind  of  objective 
teaching.  The  mere  presentation  of  objects  and  the  placing 
of  those  objects  in  certain  simple  relations  is  a  first  impor- 
tant step  in  objective  teaching.  This  step  should  be  taken 
in  the  schoolroom,  if  it  has  not  already  been  taken  outside. 
But  when  this  step,  which  is  only  a  first  step,  has  been 
2.  Ad-  taken,   whether  within  or  without  the  school, 

jective  °  advance  should  be  made.  The  character  of 
^°^^  this  advance  has  already   been  fully  described 

under    Pictures,   Stories,    and    Dramatizinrj .     These    ex- 


THE   METHOD   EXPLAINED  15 

ercises,  in  the  development  of  which  they  are  capable, 
represent  a  type  of  objective  teaching  as  far  in  advance 
of  the  conventional  elementary  use  of  objects  as  connected, 
complete  discourse  is  in  advance  of  the  words  which  com- 
pose it. 

The  "  action  sentences  "  and  the  sentences  for  "  silent 
reading  "  which  occur  frequently  in  the  Primer  are  entirely 
objective  in  their  purpose.  Indeed,  in  the  broadest  sense, 
all  primary  reading  should  be  objective,  progressively 
objective. 

6.   Sight  "Words 

The  vocabulary  of  the  Primer  consists  of  sight  words, 
most  of  which  the  children  acquire  through  the  medium  of 
the  rhyme,  as  already  explained.  A  considerable  portion 
of  the  words  used  in  the  early  part  of  the  First  Reader  are 
also  sight  words,  and  the  majority  of  these  are  learned  in 
rhymes. 

These  sight  words,  quickly  acquired,  enable  the  child 
really   to   read  from  the  first.     But   they  are  to   serve, 
almost  every  one  of  them,  a  further   purpose.      Through 
them  the  child  is  to  master  hundreds  of  other  i    gig^t 
words,   and  eventually  all   w^ords.     These   first  "^ot^^^  are 

'  "^  keys 

words,  learned  one  by  one,  are  the  keys  to  the 

whole  printed  language.    But  that  the  child  may  use  them 

as  such  he  must  know  them  perfectly. 

To  give  the  child  perfect  acquaintance  with  every  one 
of  these  early  sight  words,  to  enable  him  to  recognize  each 


16  LEARNING   TO   READ 

one  instantly,  there  are  many  varied  and  interesting 
exercises  suggested  in  subsequent  chapters.  Some  of 
these  exercises  require  the  use  of  cards.  Each  card  con- 
tains a  word  both  in  script  and  in  print,  both  forms 
2  Sight  on  the  same  side  of  the  card,  one  form  di- 
wordsmust  lectlv  Under  the  other.     Experience  has  shown 

be  per-  *^  .  ^         . 

fectiy  that  the  presentation  of  the  script  and  printed 

earne  forms  of  a  word  together  do  not  confuse  the 

child ;  they  facilitate  his  recognition  of  either  form  with 
equal  readiness. 

7.    Phonics 

The  term  "phonics,"  or  "phonetics,"  used  in  a  discussion 
of  primary  reading,  doubtless  suggests  at  once,  to  many 
minds,  an  array  of  diacritical  marks,  which  make  a  page 
of  simple  English  look  to  the  uninitiated  like  an  unknown 

1.  Phonics  language.  So  persistently  does  this  phantom 
d^ac^rlticai  ii^trude  itself,  that  it  is  in  danger  of  obscuring  for 
marks  the  tcacher  the  real  facts  and  problems  of  phonics 
in  their  simplicity,  just  as  the  practical  mastery  of  these 
facts  and  problems  is  rendered  difficult  for  the  child  by 
the  marks  themselves. 

The  phonetic  facts  are  exceedingly  simple.  The  basis  of 
our  spoken  language  is  a  certain  number  of  elementary 
sounds.     One  or  more  of  these  sounds  make  up  each  spoken 

2.  The  word.  Our  written  language  consists  of  symbols 
of  phonetic  whicli  represent  the  elementary  sounds.  As  tlie 
facta  elementary   sounds    are  combined    into   spoken 


THE   METHOD   EXPLAINED  17 

words,  so  the  simple  symbols  are  combined  into  written 
words. 

The  problem  of  learning  to  read  is  also  simple  —  to  state 
and  comprehend.      It  consists  in  associating  the  elemen- 
tary sounds  of  the   spoken   language,  which   is  3.  The 
already  familiar    to   English-speaking   children,  oJ™he"  ^ 
with  tlie  symbols  which  represent  those  sounds,  problem  of 

1  1  11  •  c  ^     ^        •      learning  to 

SO  that  wlien  a  symbol,  or  series  or  symbols,  is  read 
seen,   they  at  once  suggest  their  corresponding  sound  or 
sounds. 

The  practical  difficulties,  which  are  not  inconsiderable, 
arise  from  the  facts  that  some   of  the  elementary  sounds 
are  represented  sometimes  by  one  symbol,  sometimes  by 
another,  as  long  a  in  fate  and  elfjJd  ;  that  some 
of  the  symbols  are  used,  on  occasion,  to  represent  ^^^j.^^  ^^ 
several  different  sounds,  as  a  in  ^^r^/e,  pat,  pair,  practical 
jmrt,  etc. ;  and,  finally,  that  certain  symbols  are 
frequently   used   when  they  represent  no   sound    at   all, 
as  igh  in  eight,  u  in  four. 

It  is  with  the  hope  of  overcoming  these  difficulties  for 
the  child  that  the  aid  of  diacritical  marks  is  often  invoked. 
Unfortunately,  these  marks,  promising  much,  prove  to 
be  deceptive  assistants ;  they  conceal  instead  of  5  Diacriti- 
helping  to  overcome  the  difficulties  and  the\'  are™ecep^- 
bring  other  difficulties  of  their  own.  *^^®  ^^^^ 

A  critique,  or  even  a  mention  of  diacritical  marks,  may 
seem  out  of  place  here,  inasmuch  as  the  method  of  reading 
which  is   being  explained  makes   no   use  of  such  marks. 


18  LEARNING   TO   READ 

And  so  it  would  be,  were  it  not  for  the  fact  that  many 

6.  Why  teachers  have  been  trained  to  place  more  or  less 
marks  are  reliance  on  marks,  and  the  further  fact  that  a  clear 
h^rV°  understanding  of  the  real  eifect  of  their  use  will 
prepare  the  way  for  a  better  comprehension  of  the 
problem  before  us  and  the  simple  means  that  we  have  of 
solving  it,  which  has  been  proved  so  much  more  effective 
than  any  system  of  marks. 

To  state  the  matter  briefly,  diacritical  marks  are  means 
of  indicating  to  the  child  which  of  two  or  more  possible 
sounds  a  given  letter  or  letters  represent;  they  are  also  used 
to  indicate  that  no  sound  at  all  is  to  be  associated  with  a 
certain  letter  or  letters.  That  is,  diacritical  marks  are  a 
means  of  telling  the  child  how  to  pronounce  a  word;  in  this 
they  take  the  place  of  the  teacher  who  tells  the  child  how 
to  pronounce  a  "sight  word."  But  diacritical  marks,  in- 
stead of  indicating;  the  pronunciation  of  the  word 

7.  Wherein  o  i 

diacritical  as  a  wliolc,  as  the  teacher  does  with  the  "sight 
word,"  indicate  the  elementary  sounds  which  the 
letters  of  the  word  represent.  Herein  lies  the  advantage  of 
the  use  of  diacritical  marks  over  a  continuation  of  the  j)ure 
"  word"  method;  they  lead  at  once  to  the  analysis  of  the 
spoken  word  into  its  elementary  sounds  and  of  the  written 
Avord  into  the  symbols  which  represent  those  sounds. 

And  with  this  analysis  the  value  of  the  diacritical  mark 
for  the  child  learning  to  read  ends ;  in  fact,  beyond  this 
point,  it  is  relatively  a  hindrance  to  him.  What  the 
child    needs  now  is   to    form    the    habit  of    pronouncing 


THE    METHOD   EXPLAINED  19 

a  letter  or  a  combination  of  letters  in  a  certain   way^ 
the  habit  of  pronouncing;  a  letter  or  a  certain  „   _ 

I  o  8.  The 

combination  of  letters    in  the  way  that  he  has  babitof 

...  pronuncia- 

prononnced    that    letter     or    that    combniation  tionmust 
of  letters  before.       Only    thus    can    he  acquire 
the  abilit}^  of  reading  independently. 

Now,  obviously,  the  most  direct  way  for  the  child  to 
form  that  habit  is  to  observe  how  the  letter  or  combination 
of  letters  is  pronounced  in  one  place  and  then  to  pronounce 
them  in  the  same  way  in  another  place,  thus  con-  9.  The 
stantly  making  use  of  whatever  knowledge   of  to  form  the 
pronunciation  he  has.     To  illustrate :  when  the  pronu°cia- 
child  who  has  learned  the  sounds  of  the  consonants  ^°^ 
also  learns  to  pronounce  the  word  can,  he  has  only  to  apply 
this  knowledge  in  order  to  pronounce  scores  of  words  and 
syllables  composed  of  a  consonant  and  an;  when  he  has 
added  to  his  vocabulary  the  word^^am,  scores  of  other  words 
and  syllables  composed  of  a  consonant  and  ai/i  are  within 
his  power. 

Diacritical  marks,  unfortunately,  instead  of  telling  the 
child  to  pronounce  this  letter  or  this  combination  of  letters 
as  he  pronounced  it  on  some  other  occpsion,thus  throwing 
him  back  upon  his  own  resources  and  compel- 

,.  .  .  .  .  :  10    What 

ling  him  to  help  himself,  simply  tell  him,  with-  diacritical 
out  any  reference   to  wdiat   he   already  knows, 
how  to  pronounce  the  letter  or  combination  of  letters,  and 
they  continue  to  tell  him  the  same  thing  every  time  he 
comes  upon  this  letter  or  coml)ination  of  letters. 


,20  LEARNING  TO   READ 

From  the  child's  standpoint  the  effect  of  diacritical 
marks  is  this.     His  attention  is  directed  to  the  mark,  he 

11  Dia-  i^  ^^^  ^^  I'^^y  ^^^  ^^^'^^  fo^^  guidance  in  pro- 
criticai        nunciation,   and   iust    to    the    extent    that    he 

marks  '' 

make  the      docs    SO    rely   does  he    fail    to   use   the    power 

pupil  weak        i  •   i      i  •  •  •  •  i  •  t) 

instead  of  which  his  prcvious  experience  gives  him.  Ke- 
strong  move  this  artificial  and  arbitrary  aid  at 
any  time,  confront  the  child  with  an  ordinary  page  of 
unmarked  matter,  and  he  is  helpless  just  to  the  extent 
that  he  has  been  compelled  to  rely  on  marks. 

But,  one  may  fairly  interpose,  children  do  learn  to  read 
with  the  use  of  diacritical  marks,  and  they  become  able  in 
time  to  read  without  the  guidance  of  marks.  Very  true ; 
children  also  learn  to  read  by  the  word  method ;  and  they 
12.  chii-  used  to  learn  to  read  by  the  alphabetic  method, 
the  haSr  ^^  ^^^^3^  ^^^^^  ^^  ^^  some  jDlaccs ;  and  some  chil- 
of  pronun-    dren  learn  to  read  without  any  method.     But — 

elation  in  i       i  •      •         i  •  r       •      i    • 

spite  of  and  this  is  the  point  of  vital  importance — by 
because  of  whatever  method  or  lack  of  method  children 
*^®°^  acquire  the  power  of  reading,  this   power  con- 

sists in  the  habit  of  pronouncing  given  letters  and  com- 
binations of  letters  in  the  same  way  under  the  same 
conditions.  Whenever  we  come  upon  the  combinations 
in,  it,  an,  ine,  ite,  ane,  we  do  not  hesitate  an  instant  about 
the  proper  pronunciation,  nor  do  we  feel  the  need  of  the 
guidance  of  diacritical  marks;  we  simply  pronounce  these 
combinations  of  letters  as  we  have  been  accustomed  to 
pronounce  them. 


THE  METHOD  EXPLAINED  21 

Now,  how  is  this  simple  but  necessary  habit  formed  ? 
Usually  indirectly,  incidentally,  unconsciously,  as  a  result 
of  long  practice  in  reading.  Such  is  certainly  the  process 
of  its  formation  when  the  child  is  taught  to  rely  on  the 
help  of  diacritical  marks ;  and  even  more  slowly  and  indi- 
rectly is  this  habit  formed  when  a  pure  word  method  is 
used. 

A  clear  comprehension  of  the  facts  and  conditions,  as 
we  now  have  them  before  us,  warrants  the  theory  that  a 
method  which  attacks  the  problem  consciously  and  directly, 
a  method  which  teaches  the  child  to  rely  at  every  step 
upon  himself  and  his  experience  and  not  upon  any  arti- 
ficial aid,  a  method,  in  short,  which  trains  the  13.  xhe 
child  to  do  from  the  first  intelliti-ently  what  he  ^f^^°*!pj 

^  J  of  a  method 

otherwise  learns  to  do  blindly  after  a  lonsi;  time,  that  fosters 

,  .  ^    .  the  direct 

Will  be  a  great  gain.     It  will  give  the  child  a  formation 
much  quicker  and  surer  mastery  over  the  writ-  nuncL^ion 
ten  language;  but  more  than  that,  and  perhaps  ^^^^* 
of  even  more  importance  in  the  long  run,  it  will  give  him 
incidentally  a  systematic  course  of  training  in  self-reliance, 
in  self-help,  in  the  practical  application  on  occasion  of  an 3^ 
U3able  knowledge  that  he  may  possess. 

But  however  well  founded  a  theory  may  seem  to  be,  its 
soundness  is  fully  demonstrated  only  by  practice  and  the 
results  of  practice.  The  theory  here  formulated  has  stood 
the  test  of  years  of  practice  in  scores  of  schoolrooms;  in 
fact,  it  is  but  truth  to  say  that  the  theory  grew  gradually 
out  of  practice,  quite  as  trulj'  as  was  the  practice  guided 
by  the  theory. 


22  LEARNING   TO   HEAD 

The  essential  features  of  this  method,  satisfying  sound 
theory  and  proved  by  long  experience,  will  be  briefly  de- 
scribed in  the  following  three  sections ;  the  details  of  its 
application  are  fully  explained  in  subsequent  chapters. 

8.    Consonants 

As  already  observed  in  the  discussion  of  Phonics,  the 
whole  real  difficulty  in  this  subject  arises  from  the  fact 
that  each  of  the  elementary  sounds  is  not  uniformly  repre- 
sented by  one  and  the  same  symbol,  that  each  symbol 
1.  The  con-  docs  uot  Uniformly  represent  one  and  the  same 
soinT  °^  sound.  Yet  there  are  sound  values  attaching  to 
values  letters  and  groups  of  letters  with  such  constancy 
that,  as  we  have  already  pointed  out,  indispensable  habits 
of  pronunciation  are  formed,  even  under  methods  of  in- 
struction which  tend  to  hinder  rather  than  to  facilitate 
the  formation  of  such  habits. 

In  promoting  the  formation  of  these  habits,  children 
are  early  taught  to  associate  with  the  following  consonants 
the  sounds  which  they  represent :  h,  c  (hard),  d, 
consonant  f^  g  (hard),  h,j,  k,  I,  m,  n,p,  qii,  r,  s  (sharp),  t, 
V,  to,  y,  ch  (as  in  child),  sh,  th  (as  in  this),  and 
loh.  In  the  case  of  those  consonants  which  represent 
more  than  one  sound,  that  sound  is  chosen  for  this  early 
teaching  which  occurs  most  frequently  in  the  child's 
reading. 

Nothing  should  be  said  to  the  children  now  about  any 
other  sounds  sometimes  attachiuo;  to  some  of  these  letters. 


THE  METHOD  EXPLAINED 


23 


Their  other  sounds  the  children  easily  master,  as  experi- 
ence amply  proves,  and  in  the  same  manner  that  they 
master  the  several  sounds  of  the  vowels,  which  will  be 
explained  in  the  proper  place.  The  problem  now  is  to 
make  the  child  associate  so  firmly  in  his  mind  the  sounds 
indicated  above  with  their  respective  symbols  3.  ihemas- 
that  whenever  a  symbol  is  seen  he  thinks  its  sonant '^°°' 
sound  instantly.  To  do  this  the  letters  with  sounds 
their  sounds  are  analyzed  from  suitable  sight  words  which 
the  child  has  already  learned.  For  instance,  r  with  its 
sound  is  separated  from  run,  c  with  its  sound  from  come. 
Consonant  cards  are  used,  one  for  each  sound,   .    „ 

'  '4.  Tne  use 

to  drill  the  pupils  in  associatino^  instantly  the  ofconso- 
sound  with  its  symbol.     On  one  side  of  the  card 
is  the  word  from  which   the  sound  and  its  symbol  were 
analyzed,  with  the  symbol  repeated,  thus :  — 


r  u  n 
r 


On  the  other  side  of  the  card  is  the  symbol  alone,  but 
in  two  forms,  the  capital  and  the  small  letter,  the  former 
under  the  latter,  thus  :  — 


R 
r 


After  the  analysis,  this  latter  side  of  the  card  is  used  for 
the  drill.     But  if  a  pupil  fails  to  give  the  right  sound,  or 


24  LEARNING  TO  REAL) 

if  he  is  unable  to  give  any  sound,  at  sight  of  the  letter, 
the  card  is  reversed  for  him,  and  he  quickly  gets  the  right 
sound  from  the  word. 

It  is  of  the  utmost  importance  that  tlie  pupil  get  just 
the  right  sound  of  every  consonant  at  the  outset;  tlie 
drill  only  intensifies  and  makes  more  difficult  to  correct 
later  any  inaccuracy  of  enunciation.  To  make  sure  of 
each  pupil's   pronunciation  the  teacher   should   carefully 

5.  Correct  test  eacli  ouc  alone,  not  only  listening  to  the 
tioiTrr-"^  sound  as  he  gives  it,  but  observing  the  position 
quired  ^ud  movements  of  bis  lips,  teeth,  and  tongue. 
It  is  often  necessary  to  show  the  child  how  to  place  and 
to  move  these  vocal  organs  in  the  production  of  a  given 
sound.  This  the  teacher  can  do  by  herself  producing  the 
sound  very  distinctly,  at  the  same  time  pointing  out  to 
the  pupil  the  position  of  the  vocal  organs  in  making  the 
sound.  The  pupil  then  imitates  by  using  his  vocal  organs 
in  the  same  way. 

The  drill  should  be  rapid  and  snappy.  As  in  all  drill 
work  that  has  an  automatic  result  for  its  object,  which 
result  depends  upon  attention  and  repetition,  much  more 
is  accomplished  with  a  class  in  a  given  time  by  having 
much  concert  work.     In  this  case  to  secure  effective  con- 

6.  How  to  cert  work,  the  teacher  should  hold  her  pack  of 
tfve  concert  cards  directly  in  front  of  her,  nearly  on  a  level 
^"11  with  her  face,  the  sides  of  the  cards  containing 
only  the  consonants  toward  the  children.  She  then  takes 
cards,  rapidly,  one  at  a  time  from  the  back  of  the  pack 


THE  METHOD  EXPLAINED  25 

and  places  them  in  front,  the  children  giving  the  sonnd 
of  each.  In  this  process  the  cards  are  not  turned  over  ; 
the  teacher  does  not  need  to  see  the  side  of  the  cara 
exposed  to  the  children,  as  she  can  see  from  tlie  other 
side,  which  is  facing  her  while  the  card  is  on  the  back  of 
the  pack,  what  symbol  the  card  contains. 

In  this  concert  drill  every  child's  undivided  attention 
should  be  focused  on  the  cards,  and  all  children  should 
give  the  sound  together.  To  secure  this  result  a  simple 
device  should  be  followed  which  prevents  one  or  ^  Aneffec- 
two  of  the  quicker  pupils  becoming  leaders  and  tive  device 
the  others  dragQ-incr  along-  as  followers.  This  device  con- 
sists  in  holdins;  each  card  an  instant  at  the  rig;ht  of  the 
pack,  during  which  pause  every  pupil  prepares  to  answer ; 
when  the  card  is  placed  quickly  on  the  front  of  the  pack 
all  s;ive  the  sound  toQ;ether.  The  teacher  must  rig-idlv 
insist  that  no  one  give  the  sound  until  she  gives  the  sig- 
nal for  it,  which  is  the  movement  of  the  card  to 
the  left  placing  it  in  front  of  the  pack.  Of  course 
there  should  be  enough  individual  drill  to  insure  that 
every  child  is  getting  the  correct  sounds  and  the  desired 
facility. 

Drills  on  the  consonants  should  be  daily  until  they  are 
thoroughly  learned  ;   thoroughness  means  ability       ^^^^ 
to  produce   the  correct   sound  instantly    when-  thorough- 

.  __        ness  means 

ever  and   wherever   the    symbol   is   seen.      De- 
tails   of   the   method    and   the    order   of   taking   up  the 
consonants  will  be  given  in  subsequent  chapters. 


26  LEARNING  TO  READ 

9.  Vowels  and  Type  Words 

As  the  sound  which  each  vowel  represents  on  any  occa- 
sion is  determined  by  the  relation  in  which  the  vowel  stands 
to  other  letters,  vowels  are  treated  only  in  the  combinations 
in  which  they  actually  occur.      That  is,  the  chil- 
treatment     dreu  are  taught  to  associate  no  one  sound  with 

of  vowels 

each  vowel,  as  they  do  with  each  consonant,  but 
they  are  taught  to  associate  the  appropriate  sounds  with 
fixed  and  frequently  occurring  groups  of  letters  containing 
one  or  more  vowels. 

Work  with  the  vowel  combinations  is  begjun  as  soon  as 
the  consonants  have  been  mastered,  as  described  in  the 
last  section.  The  child  is  taught  to  analyze  the  sight 
words  which  he  has  learned  and  which  he  is  learning  daily 
and  by  their  aid  to  master  hundreds  and  thousands  of  new 
'.vords.  For  example,  he  has  learned  the  word  loill ;  when 
he  comes  to  the  word  Idll  in  his  reading,  he  already  has  the 
knowledge,  if  he  can  apply  it,  that  will  enable  him  to 
master  liill.  The  teacher  helps  him  to  make  this  appli- 
cation of  his  knowledge  by  writing  the  familiar  word  for 
him  on  the  board,  slightly  separating  the  iv  from  the  rest 
of  the  word,  and  the  new  word  directly  under  it,  tlius  : — • 

w  ill 
hill 

He  already  knows  the  consonants,  and  he  at  once  perceives 
that  the  ill  of  the  second  word  is  exactly  like  the  ill  of  the 
first.     He  pronounces  the  first ;  he  cannot  fail  to  pronounce 


THE   METHOD   EXPLAINED  27 

tlie  second.  He  has  thus  taken  the  first  conscious  step 
in  the  formation  of  the  habit  of  pronouncing  2.  The  first 
the  same  combination  of  letters  in  the  same  forming 
way.  Further  steps  are  taken  when,  with  ill  as  cfatfo"'"''''' 
a  basis  and  with  the  use  of  his  knowledge  of  the  ^^^i* 
consonant  sounds,  he  masters  the  words,  hill,  chill,  (hill, 
Jill,  frill,  fjill,  (/rill,  kill,  7niU,2)ill,  quill,  rill,  etc. 

Every  other  sight  w^ord  that  the  child  has  learned  or 
may  learn  is  made  to  do  service  in  a  similar  way.  If  the 
child  knows  the  word  mar/,  he  has  the  power  to  master  the 
whole  -ay  series:  haij,  hrcaj,  day,  dray,  fay,  gay,  gray,  hay, 
jay,  lay,  iiay,  i^lay,  etc.  All  the  help  he  needs,  3.  The  only 
and  all  that  he  should  receive,  is  help  to  enable  ^^iP'^®®'^^^ 
him  to  apply  his  knowledge,  to  compare  the  new  with  the 
old.  This  help  is  best  given  by  placing  the  words  together, 
the  new  under  the  old, 

m  ay 
pay 
1  ay,  etc. 

A  w^ord  which  is  made  to  serve  as  a  basis  of  acquiring 
other  words  of  the  same  "  series  "  or  "  family  "  is  called, 
for  convenience,  a  "  type  word."     As  soon  as  words  begin 
to  be  studied  in  this  w^ay  drill  is  begun  with  the  4.  "Type 
Phonic  Chart  as  directed  in  detail  in  following  ^^^  their 
chapters.     Every  new  word  which  arises  the  child  "^® 
should  master  through  a  "  type  word  "  if  he  has  one  in  his 
vocabulary.     If  he  has  no  type  word,  then  the  new  word, 
learned  as  a  sight  word,  will  thereafter  serve  as  a  type 
w^ord. 


28  LEARNING   TO   READ 

The  constant  use  of  all  the  knowledge  that  the  child  has 
of  consonant  sounds  —  and  that  should  be  perfect  —  and 
of  vowel  combinations,  as  he  has  learned  them  in  sight 
5  The  w^ords,  cauuot  be  too  rigidly  insisted  upon.  In 
pupil  every  case  in  which   the   child   knows  the  ele- 

makes  con-  ,  .         .  »    ,  ,      . 

stantuse  ments  —  the  combinations  ot  letters  and.  their 
ing  knowir  souiids  —  of  w^liich  a  iiew  word  is  made  up,  he 
^^^®  must  use  his  knowledge  in  mastering  the  new 

word.  If  he  is  not  able  to  do  this  unaided,  as  he  wdll  not 
be  at  first,  the  aid  should  take  the  form  of  assistance,  as 
already  illustrated,  in  applying  his  knowledge ;  and  no 
other  aid  whatever  should  be  given. 

This  method  at  first  seems  slow.     It  is  relatively  slow  ; 

it  would  be  easier  and  quicker  for  the  time  being  to  tell  the 

child  the  new  word  outright,  or  to  mark  it  for  him  diacrit- 

ically.     But  let   us  not  overlook   the  effect  of  the  work 

which  w^e   are  making;  the  pupil   do.     We  are 

6.  The  ,  .  oil 

effect  of       helping  him  to  form  and  to  form  very  rapidly,  as 

this  work  .  ,  ^  i     i  •-        i  ■   i 

experience  has  proved,  a  necessary  habit  which 
he  otherwise  acquires  but  slowly,  that  of  observing  carefully 
and  pronouncing  the  elements  of  new  words  as  he  pro- 
nounced the  same  elements  in  old  words.  We  are  not  telling 
the  pupil  how  to  pronounce  the  word  before  him  merely,  we 
are  preparing  him  to  pronounce  dozens  and  scores  of  words 
and  syllables  which  contain  the  same  elements  as  the  word 
in  question. 

This  method  rigidly  followed,  slow  at  first,  soon  develops 
into  the  quickest  and  surest  method.     The  habit  which  the 


THE   METHOD   EXPLAINED  29 

pupil  rapidly  forms  of  relying  on  himself,  on  his  own  knowl- 
edge, soon  begins  to  relieve  the  teacher.  The  self-confi- 
dence which  the  feeling  of  power  inspires  in  the  7.  Thepu- 
pupil  is  of  inestimable  value;  he  knows  that  he  reiywihim° 
canread,  and  read  without  help.  He  doesn't  want  ^^^^ 
help;  he  wants  to  dig  out  every  new  word  for  himself. 
The  independent  reading  at  their  seats  and  in  their 
homes,  which  children  delight  to  do  after  a  few  months 
of  this  training  in  self-help,  first  with  the  rhyme  and 
later  with  the  consonants  and  type  words,  can  scarcely  be 
credited  by  one  who  has  not  seen  it. 

But  there  are  a  few  more  or  less  plausible  objections  or 
queries  that  may  be  raised  at  this  point.     The  habit  of 
always  pronohncing  a  given  vowel  combination 
in  the  same  way  is  not  a  safe  guide;  for  the  pro-  bintyof 
nunciation   of  vowels    and   vowel  combinations  ™^^*^^® 
varies.     For   instance,   note   the    sound  value  of   -010   in 
cow  and  show  and  again  in  shoiver;  of  -oicl  in  hoid  and 
growl;  of  -oil  in  roll  and  doll;  of  -ive  in  hive  and  give; 
of  -ear  in  near  and  hear;  of  -eak   in  iceak  and  break ;  of 
-ead  in  head  and  head.    The  reply  to  this  objection  is  that 
tlie  child  has  within  himself  the  power  to  determine  the 
correct  sound  in  such  doubtful  cases. 

Suppose  the  child  who  has  learned  the  sight  words  head 
and  head  has  to  read  this  sentence  :  /  ivill  read  j/ou  a  story 
about  bread.  It  is  quite  possible  tliat  he  would  mispro- 
nounce both  read  and  bread.  But  he  can  correct  himself. 
What  he  reads  must  ''make  sense";  he  must  understand 


30  LEARNING   TO   READ 

it.  If  he  mispronounces  either  of  these  words,  the  sen- 
9.  How  the  tence  will  be  without  meaning  for  him.  He 
rectehir  ^^^^^  again,  applying  another  pronunciation  of 
mistakes  Qacl  whicli  he  knows;  then  he  reads  the  sentence, 
and  he  knows  that  he  reads  it  for  he  understands  it. 
Children  are  taught  from  the  very  first  rhyme  that  they 
must  understand  what  they  read. 

This  kind  of  test  which  the  child  thus  applies  to  his 
reading  is  not  mere  guessing  on  his  part;  it  is  an  act  of 

10  This  is  sound  intelligence.  The  child  is  thinking;  he  is 
thinking,  not  bringing  his  knowledge  and  power  to  bear  on  the 
guessing  problem  before  him.  He  is  being  trained  in  some- 
thing more  than  the  mere  pronunciation  of  a  word. 

Had  the  child  in  this  instance  been  guided  by  diacritical 
marks,  he  might  indeed  have  pronounced  the  words  of  the 
sentence  correctly  the  first  time;  he  might  also  not  have 
read  the  sentence,  not  have  understood  it;  and  there  would 
have  been  nothing  to  indicate  to  the  teacher  that  he  was 
reading  only  words.  But  in  the  method  we  are  describing, 
this  measure  of  immediate  uncertainty  about  the  correct 

11  The  real  Pronunciation  of  some  words,  so  far  from  being 
value  of  mis-  a  hindrance  to  the  child's  independent  reading, 

is  made  a  valuable  test  and  stimulus  of  intelligent 
reading.  As  every  keenly  observant  teacher  knows,  there  is 
a  constant  tendenc}^  on  the  part  of  children  to  read  words  to 
the  neglect  of  ideas.  Any  method  which  focuses  attention 
on  the  words  fosters  this  tendency;  any  method  which 
compels  the  pupil  to  direct  his  attention  to  ideas  opposes  it. 


THE   METHOD   EXPLAINED  31 

But,  to  pursue  still  farther  possible  objections  to  this 
method  of  determining  the  correct  pronunciation  of  words, 
suppose  the  child  about  to  read  the  sentence  proposed  above 
knows  the  sound  of  -ead  only  as  it  occurs  in  head;  , „  . 

•^  12.  A  second 

he  will  probably  pronounce  bread  correctly,  Ijut  objection  and 
will  mispronounce  read.  Can  he  then  correct 
himself?  Often;  the  consonants  and  the  context  are  fre- 
quently enough  to  enable  the  child  who  is  accustomed  to  try 
to  understand  what  he  reads,  especially  if  he  has  had  the 
experience  of  a  few  months,  to  get  out  a  word  like  this  cor- 
rectly. If  he  cannot  do  this,  he  is  given  the  pronunciation  of 
read,  and  it  becomes  a  type  word.  Thenceforth,  aided  by 
his  understanding,  the  child  is  prepared  to  determine  the 
correct  pronunciation  of  lead,  leader,  dead,  dread,  mead, 
meadoiv,  head,  plead,  tread,  .stead ij,  etc. 

But  what  happens  if  the  child  does  not  know  the  spoken 
form  of  a  word  which  he  is  trying  to  read  ?  What  means 
has  he  then  of  determining  whether  a  pronunciation  which 
he  may  give  is  correct  or  not  ?  No  means,  and  he  ought  to 
have  none.     If  he  doesn't  know  what  he  is  read-  ,,   .  ,^,.  ^ 

13.  A  tnird 

ing  about,  if  he  has  not  the  elementary  ideas  for  objection 
which  the  words  before  him  stand,  that  fact  ought 
to  be  revealed,  and  the  more  strikingly  it  is  revealed  the 
better.  What  the  child  needs  under  these  circumstances, 
first  of  all,  is  not  a  word,  but  an  idea.  Any  assistance  or 
any  method  that  enables  him  to  get  the  word  without  the 
idea  which  the  word  represents  is  pernicious. 

By  the  method  which  we  are  describing  the   child   is 


32  LEARNING   TO   READ 

learning  to  do  from  the  first  wheat  he  must  eventually  do 
if  he  becomes  an  intelligent  reader;  he  is  learning  to  guide 
himself  by  the  context,  by  the  meaning.     Tlie  child  is  learn- 
in  o;  to  do  iust  what  you  do  when  you  meet  words 

14.  How  do         '^^  ''  T^        -1  1  7 

you  read  that  are  uew  to  you.  Possibly  suljyiocyanogen 
°^^  ^  '  and  hydroHulpliocyanic  are  such  words  in  the  sen- 
tence; Sidjjhocycmogen  with  Jiydrogen  forms  liydrosulpho- 
cyanie  acid. 

Can  you  read  this  sentence  ?  Are  you  sure  about  the 
pronunciation  of  sidpJiocyanogen  and  hydrosidphocyanic  ? 
To  one  long  familiar  with  the  printed  language  these  words 
present  no  great  difficulties  of  pronunciation,  yet  you  may 
well  be  in  doubt  on  some  points,  like  the  sound  of  r/,  also 
of  c,  unless  you  know  the  rule  about  the  sound  of  c  before  y. 

Now,  if  you  are  a  student  of  chemistry  and  these  words 
are  in  your  spoken  vocabulary,  you  determine  their  correct 
pronunciation  readily  and  with  confidence ;  you  read  the 
sentence.  On  the  other  hand,  if  these  terms  are  not  in 
your  spoken  vocabulary,  if  you  have  no  idea  about  the 
things  for  which  the  words  stand,  you  do  not  read  the 
sentence  and  you  remain  in  doubt  about  the  pronunciation. 

To  resolve  your  difficulty  you  resort  to  the  dictionary. 
If  you  want  only  to  pronounce  words  in  reading,  you 
quickly  get  from  the  dictionary  the  help  you 
the  diction-  need.  But  it  is  interesting  to  note  that  the 
ary  e  ps  (dictionary,  though  using  constantly  diacritical 
marks,  does  not  rely  on  them  alone  to  indicate  to  you 
correct  pronunciation ;  at  the  bottom  of  every  page  are 


THE   METHOD   EXPLAINED  33 

little  familiar  words  in  which  the  diacritically  marked 
letters  are  pronounced  in  the  same  way  as  in  the  words 
above  whose  pronunciation  you  wish  to  know. 

If  you  are  not  satisfied  with  words  alone,  but  insist  on 
reading  ideas,  you  study  the  definitions  of  the  words. 
This  may  suffice ;  but  in  order  to  enable  yourself  really  to 
read  the  sentence  proposed,  you  will  probably  need  to 
work  in  a  chemical  laboratory. 

A  further  objection  to  this  treatment  of  phonics,  as  we 
are  describing  it,  may  be  conceived.  It  may  appear  that, 
notwithstanding  the  fact  that  the  child  masters  hundreds 
and  thousands  of  common  regularly  spelled  words,  throiigli 
their  similarity  to  a  few  score  type  Avords,  still  not  suffi- 
cient use  is  made  of  the  phonetic  idea.  As  the  key  to  eacli 
series  a  type  word  has  to  be  learned  as  a  siglit  ,„  „     , 

•^  ^  '^16.  How  far 

word ;  there  are  also  some  hundreds  of  other  phonics  are 
words  which  are  so  irregular  that  thev  have  to 
be  learned  each  one  by  itself  as  a  sight  word.  Why  should 
not  most  or  all  of  these  sight  w^ords  be  mastered  in  some 
way  by  phonics  ?  The  answer  is  that  these  words  are 
mastered  phonetically  to  a  large  and,  as  the  child  ad- 
vances, to  an  increasing  extent.  As  the  child  gets  a  little 
insight  into  the  phonetic  idea  he  ceases  to  learn  words 
purely  as  sight  words  in  the  sense  that  the  words  which  he 
learned  through  his  first  rhymes  were  sight  words ;  he  al- 
ways applies  to  the  mastery  of  a  new  word  such  knowledge 
as  he  has,  be  that  word  regidar  or  irregular,  a  member  of 
a  series  to  which  he  has  a  key  word,  or  the  first  word  of 


34  LEARNING  TO   READ 

that  particular  form  which  he  has  ever  seen.  Now  the 
child  is  always  able  to  apply  his  knowledge  of  the  conso- 
nants and  their  sounds  ;  with  increasing  experience  with 
vowel  sounds  and  practice  in  determining  pronunciation  by 
the  context,  he  grows  rapidly  in  ability  to  master  entirely 
new  words,  words  not  similar  in  form  to  any  which  he  has 
previously  learned. 

But  a  briefer  and  more  pointed  answer  to  the  sugges- 
17.  Teach-  tiou  of  incompleteucss  in  this  scheme  of  phonics 
nota"ys1;em  ^^  ^^^^  ^^  ^^^  ^^^  teaching  a  systcm  of  phonics  ; 
of  phonics     ^6  are  teaching;  children  to  read. 

10.   New  "Words 

The  general  process  by  which  the  pupil  acquires  a  read- 
ing  vocabulary,    first   by   learning    sight   words,   largely 
through  the  medium  of  rhymes,  and  later  by  applying 
principles  of  phonics,  has  already  been  described.     Let  us 
now,  from  a  little  different  standpoint,  look  at 

1  The  treat- 

mentofnew  the  principles  which  are  to  guide  the  teacher  in 
^°    ^  the  treatment  of  new  words  which  arise  after 

the  j)upil  has  a  vocabulary  of  a  hundred  or  more  sight 
words,  after  he  has  mastered  the  consonants  and  their 
sounds,  and  after  he  has  begun  work  on  the  Phonic  Chart. 
The  most  fundamental  principles  of  all  are  never  to  do 
for  the  child  what  he  can  do  for  himself;  and,  correla- 
tively,  always  to  help  the  child  to  help  himself.  The  ap- 
plication of  these  principles  is  this :  A  child  fails  to 
recognize  a  word.     Is  it  a  word  which  he  has  already  had 


THE  METHOD  EXPLAINED  35 

as  a  sight  word  ?     If  su,  let  hiin  go  back  to  the  rhyme 
or  story  in  which  he  learned  it.     Is  it  a  '"series"  „  „ 

-^  2.  The  most 

word  which  he  has  already  had,  like  save  f     Let  funda- 

1  •  ill!  1  1  1       c   mental 

him  get  the  clew  tliroiigh  some  other  word  or  principles 
the  series,  like  (jave,  which  he  knows.  Is  it  a  °  ^ 
word  which  he  has  never  had,  but  which  is  made  up 
of  elements  which  he  knows,  say  meat?  Help  him  to 
recognize  and  put  together  the  known  elements,  per- 
haps through  comparison  with  the  familiar  word  eat. 
Is  it  an  easy  and  regular  w^ord,  but  the  first  one  of  its 
series  which  the  pupil  has  seen,  such  as  (jrow  ?  Let 
the  pupil  pronounce  the  initial  consonants  (jr,  which  he 
knows,  and  give  him  wdiat  help  he  needs  with  the 
rest ;  merely  covering  the  ic,  better  than  drawing  a 
line  through  it,  will  usually  suffice,  especially  when  the 
child  is  guiding  himself  by  the  sense.  Is  it  both  a 
new  and  irregular,  difficult  word,  like  iliroiujli  ?  In  such 
a  case  it  is  often  better  for  the  teacher  to  sound  at  once 
the  part  of  the  word  wdiich  the  child  does  not  know,  -oiirjh, 
drawing  a  line  under  it  ;  the  child  must  then  prefix  the 
sound  of  the  letters  which  he  does  know,  tlir-,  thus  giving 
the  whole  word.  The  w^ord  as  a  whole  should  then  be 
pronounced  very  distinctly  and  slowly,  first  by  the  teacher, 
if  the  pupil  has  not  already  got  just  the  right  sound. 

A  new  w'ord  which  presents  any  considerable  difficulty 
should  be  pronounced  by  the  child  several  times  before 
leaving  it.  This  should  be  done  thoughtfully,  attentively, 
not  mechanically.     To  secure  this  thoughtful  pronuncia- 


3G  LEARNING  TO  READ 

tion,  the  word  should  be  used  in  several  short  sentences, 

3.  Repeated  as,  ''  I  Can  See  througli  the  window; "  "  I  have 
!.^.°.nS?^^     read   throiicrh    the   lesson;"    "I   have   walked 

pronuncia-  o  ' 

^-^o^  through  the  hall."     Requiring  pupils  always  to 

repeat  new  words  several  times  in  succession,  as  through, 
through,  through,  through,  through,  is  an  exercise,  at  best, 
of  doubtful  value  ;  and  it  usually  degenerates  into  a  quite 
thoughtless  repetition. 

To  assist  her  pupils  intelligently  in  this  way,  it  is  obvi- 
ous that  the  teacher  must  always  have  clearly  in  mind 
just  what  she  can  fairly  expect  her  pupils  to  know ; 
,  „      ^    she  must  also  be  quick  and  skillful  in  bringing; 

4.  How  the  ^   .  &      o 

teacher  as-  before  them  something  that  they  already  know 
through  which  they  may  master  the  unknown. 
It  is  always  possible  for  the  teacher  to  determine  at  any 
point,  by  reference  to  the  vocabularies  at  the  back  of  the 
books,  just  what  words  her  pupils  have  used  in  reading  in 
the  Primer,  the  First  and  the  Second  Reader.  Also  the 
type  words  available  as  an  aid  to  the  pupils  in  pronounc- 
ing the  new  words  in  any  lesson  of  the  First  or  Second 
Reader  are  given  in  parentheses  over  the  words  preceding 
each  lesson. 

This  constant  need  of  using  knowledge  over  and  over  in 
acquiring  more,  emphasizes  the  necessity  of  thoroughness, 
that  what  the  child  has  once  learned  may  be  available  and 
usable  whenever  he  requires  it. 

There  is  one  caution  which  is  not  out  of  place  here. 
The  effort  to  make  the  pupil  help  himself  in  making  out 


THE  METHOD  EXPLAINED  87 

new  words  should  be  intelligent.  If  he  has  not  the  defi- 
nite knowledge  which  he  can  apply,  which  you  can  help 
him  to  apply  to  the  mastery  of  the  new  word,  do  not  keep 
liiin  merely  guessing  at  the  ^vord  vaguely  and  at  random. 
Above  all  things  do  not  pass  such  a  word  from  5  ^ 
one  pupil  to  another  and  another  requiring  each  caution 
one  to  "  try  it."  Such  a  practice,  all  too  common,  is  most 
pernicious.  No  j^upil  has  gained  anything  from  his  effort, 
for  he  has  not  been  working  intelligently;  much  time  has 
been  consumed;  and  worse  than  the  loss  of  time,  every 
pupil  has  listened  to  many  mispronunciations.  The 
course  for  the  teacher  to  pursue  in  such  a  case  as  this  is 
to  pronounce  the  word,  after  some  pupil  has  contributed 
"whatever  little  part  he  knows — to  pronounce  it  and  to 
have  it  repeated  by  the  pupils  several  times. 

11.    Drill 

In  our  desire  to  make  intelligent  and  independent 
readers  of  our  pupils  as  quickly  as  possible,  we  must  not 
overlook  the  fact  that  there  is  a  considerable  1  Mechan- 
amount  of  mechanism  involved  in  reading,  and  l^^  ^^^^ 

o'  be  uncon- 

that,  in  order  to  have  good  reading,  this  mech-  scious 
anism  must  be  nearly  or  quite  unconscious. 

Now,  an  acquired  mechanism  of  the  kind  required  in 
reading  is  made  unconscious,  not  by  trying  to  ignore  its 
existence,  but   by  mastering   it   so   thoroughly  2.  How 
that    it   demands    no    direct   attention.      Such  SmadT^im- 
perfect  mastery    is   most  quickly  and   economi-  conscious 
cally  achieved   by  devoting  at  times   the  undivided   at- 


38  LEARNING   TO   READ 

tent  ion  and  effort  to  the  process  to  be  acquired.  This 
is  drill. 

The  principal  things  that  need  to  be  drilled  as  a  basis 
for  fluent  and  intelligent  reading  are  sight  words,  so  that 
3.  Theprin-  the  i^upil  will  rccoguize  them  instantly  on  sight; 
to^be  *^^^^^  the  consonants,  so  that  the  pupil  can  sound  them 
drilled  accurately  and  unhesitatingly  on  all  occasions ; 
the  series  or  families  of  words,  so  that  the  pupil  will 
become  accustomed  to  pronounce  the  same  vowel  com- 
binations in  the  same  way ;  the  analysis  and  attentive  pro- 
nunciation of  words  with  distinct  articulation ;  the 
pronunciation  of  two  or  more  consonants  in  combination ; 
and  the  mastery  of  new  words  by  the  application  of  knowl- 
edge and  principles  already  learned.  Drill  in  these  things, 
the  details  of  which  are  explained  in  the  proper  places, 
should  be  given  in  exercises  distinct  from  the  reading 
lesson  proper. 

12.  Reading 

That  the  oral  reading  exercise  may  be  a  success,  the 
pupils  should  be  prepared  for  it,  as  indicated  in  the  last, 
section.  This  does  not  mean  that  reading  must  wait  until 
all  the  mechanism  of  reading  has 'been  made  automatic  by 
drill;  real  reading  should  begin  the  first  day  of  school  and 
continue  daily  without  interruption.     It  means 

1.  Prepara-  7  .  .  pit  i  •    n 

tion  for  that  the  peculiar  difficulties  of  each  lesson,  chiefly 
rea  ing  ^^^^^  words  and  unknown  ideas,  should  be  antici- 
pated and  overcome  in  an  exercise  preceding  the  reading 


THE   METHOD  EXPLAINED  39 

proper.  Sometimes  this  preparatory  exercise  may  be  a 
drill  exercise,  pure  and  simple;  but  more  often,  especially 
as  the  readiug  becomes  more  advanced  after  leaving  the 
Primer,  it  should  take  the  form  of  a  preliminary  study  of 
the  lesson  to  be  read. 

With  the   mechanical    difficulties  largely  overcome   in 
advance,  the  pupil's  mind  is  free  to  read   ideas,  and   not 
mere  words.     What  does  it  mean  to  read  ideas  ?  2.  what 
It  means   actively  to  think   the   thoughts   and  mg  means 
really  to  feel  the   emotions    represented   by   the    words, 
the  sentences,  the  paragraphs,  and  the  whole  stor}'  read. 

This  practical  definition  of  reading  will  bear  analysis. 
It  implies  that  there  are  thoughts  and  emotions  repre- 
sented not  merely  by  words,  but  also  by  sentences,  and 
still  further  by  paragraphs,  and  finally  by  the  whole  story. 
That  this  implication  is  absolutely  true  to  fact,  a  little 
study  and  reflection  must  convince  any  one. 

The  frequent  failure  on  the  part  of  the  teacher  to  grasp 
fully  and  to  carry  out  completely  this  conception  of  read- 
ing, results  in  the  acceptance  of  many  an  exercise  as  real 
reading — -and  that,  too,  in  grades  far  beyond  the  primary 
—  which  are  but  slightly  better  than  the  mere  calling 
of  words. 

Beyond  the  calling  of  words,  which  is  not  reading  at 
all,  it   will   serve    our    purpose   here  to    distin- 
guish four  degrees,  or  stages  in  reading,  the  first  greesof 
three  of    which  are   abundantly  exemplified  in 
practice,  but  only  the  fourth  is  true,  adequate  reading. 


40  LEARNING  TO   READ 

In  the  first  and  lowest  of  these  stages  the  reader  under- 
stands, in  a  measure  at  least,  every  word,  forms  in  liis 
4.  Raading  mind  the  idea  which  corresponds  to  the  reality 
neotad  ^^^^'  ^^'^^i^^  ^'^ch  word  stauds,  and  yet  he  fails  to 

ideas  read  the  Sentence  wli  icli  tho  words  compose.     He 

does  not  conceive  the  larger  thought  which  should  grow 
out  of  the  individual  ideas  which  the  separate  words 
represent. 

When  a  child  pronounces  each  word  by  itself  as  though 
it  had  no  connection  with  any  other  word,  often  with  a 
long  pause  between  successive  words,  though  sometimes, 
when  more  fluent,  calling  the  words  rapidly  enough,  but 
with  a  certain  jerky,  disconnected  inflection,  he  is  usually, 
at  best,  reading  only  unconnected  ideas.  As  he  fails  in  his 
5  Wiy  voice  to  synthesize  the  several  words  into  one 
iie.jara  sentence,  so  he  fails  in  his  mind  to  synthesize 
U3ru3d  the    several   ideas   into   one    complete   thought. 

And  it  is  usually  true  that  his  failure  to  think  the  ideas 
together  is  due  to  his  failure  to  read  the  words  together 
into  a  connected  whole. 

This  kind  of  reading  is  not  natural,  is  not  characteris- 
tic either  of  the  child  mind  or  of  child  speech;  it  is  an 
artificial   product,  the  result  of   poor  teaching. 

6.   The  ori-  ,    ^  '  ^  ^ 

gin  of  the  The  child  has  been  taught  at  first  and  later 
allowed  to  focus  his  attention  on  individual 
words  and  individual  ideas.  He  has  learned  words  uncon- 
nectedly;  he  reads  sentences  as  though  they  were  nothing 
more  than  horizontal  rows  of  words. 


THE   METHOD  EXPLAINED  41 

This  habit  is  strengthened,  and  sometimes  formed,  by 
requiring  or  allowing  children  to  read  aloud  matter  rather 
difficult  for  them  without  first  having  read  it  to  them- 
selves. It  requires  so  much  attention  and  effort  to  master 
each  word  as  they  come  to  it,  that  none  is  left  for  the 
mastery  of  tlie  thought  as  a  whole. 

To  prevent  the  formation  of  this  habit  is  easy ;  to  over- 
come it,  when  once  it  is  well  established,  is  difficult.     The 
precautions  or  measures  to  l^e  adopted  for  either  purpose 
are  the  same.     First  of  all,  the  teacher  must  riot  forget 
for   one    moment  that  back  of  the  sentence  is  7.  how  to 
a  thought,  just  as  back  of  each  word  is  an  idea,  ^^eak  tL 
While    she   makes   sure    that   the    child   under-  ^^^^^ 
stands  the  ideas,  she  must  also  make  sure  that  he  forms 
and  grasps  the  thought. 

Used  as  directed,  the  rhymes  give  the  pupil  the  right 
start.  Through  them  he  gets  the  thought  made  up  of 
ideas;    by   means    of   them,    he   expresses   that  „  „. 

'        "^  ,  ?  r  g    Direct 

thought  through  sentences  composed  of  words,  attention  to 
To  insure  the  continuance  of  these  processes  of  "^ 

thought-getting  and  thought-expressing,  the  pupil  should  be 
aided  by  questions  which  direct  his  attention  to  the  thought, 
and  by  readings  which  bring  out  the  thought.  Get  the 
child  to  think  the  thought  and  he  will  express  it  in  his 
reading;  get  him  to  read  the  words  as  they  should  be 
read,  and  he  will  grasp  the  thought.  The  phrase  drills 
suggested  and  described  elsewhere  help  to  overcome  any 
tendency  to  word  by  word  reading  which  the  beginners 
may  be  developing. 


42  LEARNING  TO  llEAl) 

Tn  the  second  reading  stage  the  pupil  grasps  the  thought 
of  sentences,  one  at  a  time,  but  stops  short  of  thinking  sen- 
tence thouy-hts  tog-ether  into  a  larijfer  whole.  This  kind  of 
reading  is  exceedingly  prevalent,  especially  in  the  first 
grade.     And,  unlike  reading  of  the  first  stage,  it  will  often 

Readin  ^^^^^  ^^  ^-*®  Very  good  reading.  The  individual 
unconnected  sentences  may  be  given  with  excellent  expression, 
°^^  ^  and  the  child  may  give  evidence  in  other  ways 
that  he  grasps  the  thought  of  each  sentence.  A  careful 
observer,  however,  readily  detects  the  true  character  of  this 
reading  when  the  child  tries  to  read  sentences  whose  mean- 
ing and  expression  are  especially  dependent  on  the 
thoughts  of  preceding  sentences.  Questions,  also,  that  call 
for  an  understanding  not  of  a  single  sentence,  Vjut  of  a 
paragraph  or  group  of  sentences,  are  sure  to  reveal  the 
limitations  of  the  child's  mental  processes. 

This  kind  of  reading,  like  that  of  the  first  stage,  is  not 
a  natural  development  of  child- thought  and  child-expres- 
the  ^'^^ '  ^^  '^^  ^^^^  product  of  instruction.  Too  often 
habit  is  the  reading  matter  of  the  first  grade  encourages 
°^^^  this  kind  of  reading;  indeed  it  scarcely  makes 

possible  any  better  reading.  It  presents  no  thoughts  higher 
than  unconnected  sentence-thoughts.  There  is  no  continu- 
ity, no  progress  of  thought  from  sentence  to  sentence.  The 
sentences  are  unconnected,  and  might  be  read  in  any  order 
as  well  as  in  the  order  given. 

The  material  presented  in  the  Aldine  Readers,  even  in 
the  Primer  and  the  First  Reader,  will  be  found  not  of  this 


THE  METHOD  EXPLAINED  43 

kind.  Back  of  even  the  most  simple  group  of  sentences  is 
a  larger  thought  or  picture  in  the  development  of  which 
each  sentence  plays  its  part.  Whether  the  pupils  get  these 
larger  thoughts  will  depend  entirely  upon  the  way  the 
teacher  conducts  the  work. 

First  of  all,  the  teacher  must  get  and  keep  those  larger 
thoughts  in  her  own  mind,  as  well  as  the  subordinate 
thoughts  out  of  which  the  larger  ones  grow.  ^^  how  to 
Then  she  must  keep  constantly  before  her  as  the  avoid  the 
object  of  the  child's  reading  the  thinking  of 
those  larger  thoughts,  considering  the  thoughts  of  the 
single  sentences  but  means  to  the  larger  end.  This  con- 
ception and  aim  on  the  part  of  the  teacher  will  serve  as 
the  best  test  of  her  methods,  determining  whether  they 
lead,  naturally  and  inevitably  to  the  end  sought,  or  not. 

In  tlie  light  of  this  whole  discussion  it  is  easy  to  see  that 
the  practice  of  allowing  each  pupil  to  read  but  one  sentence 
at  a  time,  which  is,  unfortunately,  almost  universal  among 
first-grade  teachers,  and  only  slightly  less  preva-  12.  Pupiis 
lent  among  second-grade  teachers,  fosters  the  for-  ^nt^emfes 
mation  of  just  the  habit  which  we  would  avoid.  coi"iectediy 
If  pupils  are  to  think  beyond  single  sentence-thoughts,  if 
they  are  to  think  from  thought  to  thought  until  they  have 
developed  a  larger  thought,  they  must  read  from  sentence 
to  sentence.  They  must  be  questioned  and  stimulated  to 
talk  about  the  larger  thoughts,  and  not  exclusively  about 
the  sino;le-sentence  thouschts. 

But  are  children  of  the  first  grade  capable  of  this  ?     The 


44  LEARNING   TO   READ 

reason  most  frequently  given  by  teachers  for  having  their 
pupils  read  but  one  sentence  at  a  time  is  that  such  little 
children  are  not  able  to  read  more.  Before  accepting  this 
reason  as  a  fact  let  us  ask  whether  children  on  entering 
13  p  1  school  are  capable  of  understanding  the  story 
are  capable  which  the  teachcr  tells  introducing  the  first 
and  reading  rhyme,  or  whether  they  can  grasp  only  uncon- 
connectediy  j^g^^ed  seutcnces  of  it;  whether  they  are  capable 
of  reading  the  story  which  the  pictures  tell,  or  whether  they 
can  see  only  the  different  objects  of  the  picture. 

The  only  real  difference  in  these  cases  is  what  may  be 
called  a  mechanical  one.  It  rcrpiires  time  and  experience 
for  the  children  to  become  so  familiar  with  the  printed  page 
that  they  can  gather  the  thought  as  easily  and  as  rapidly 
14.  A  me-  through  that  medium  as  tlicy  do  through  pictures 
difficult  to  ^^^  ^^^  spoken  word.  This  mechanical  difficulty 
be  overcome  must  not  be  ignored.  Where  and  while  it  exists  it 
justifies  and  necessitates  the  reading  of  a  single  sentence  by 
a  pupil.  But  when,  by  study  and  by  repeated  reading, 
this  mechanical  difficulty  is  overcome  for  a  j)aragraph  or  a 
connected  group  of  sentences,  that  paragraph  or  group  of 
sentences  should  be  read  entire  by  a  single  pupil.  Only 
such  reading  will  insure  the  reading  of  connected  thoughts, 
the  grasping  of  the  larger  thoughts,  which  we  desire. 

Almost  from  the  beginning,  reviews  sliould  be  read  in 
connected  sentences,  a  single  pupil  reading  several,  giving 
expression  to  show  that  he  understands  each  sentence  as 
but  a  part  of  the  whole.     During  the  first  months  it  will 


THE   METIiOD   EXPLAINED  45 

not  be  the  first  nor  the  second  review  that  can  be  read  suc- 
cessfully in  this  way;   but  the  time  will  come,  15.  How- 
must  come  in  the  course  of  re-reading  these  early  ^^^^®,T1 

o  J     should  be 

pages,  when  a  pupil  will  be  al^le  to  read  several  read 
sentences  connectedly  in  succession.  Long  before  the  mid- 
dle of  the  first  year,  pupils  should  be  regularly  reading  their 
first  reviews  in  this  connected  way,  and  they  should  be 
beginning  this  practice  ^\\\\\  the  advance  reading.  Before 
the  end  of  the  first  year  it  should  become  customary  for 
each  pupil,  even  in  the  advance  reading,  to  read  several 
sentences,  as  many  as  required,  in  succession.  To  make 
this  practice  successful  the  reading  matter  must  not  be  too 
difficult  and  the  preparation  for  the  reading  must  be 
adequate. 

Tlie  third  stage  in  reading  is  analogous  to  the  second, 
and  is   developed  in  an  analogous  way.     It  consists  in 
grasping  more  or  less  adequately  the  connected  ig.  Read- 
thought  represented  hy  single  paragraphs,  or  even  ^^ected^"^ 
by  small  groups  of  paragraphs,  but  it  fails  to  paragraphs 
grasp  the  complete  thought  of  an  entire  story,  poem,  or 
argument.    This  kind  of  reading  will  ])e  found  exemplified 
in  all  grades  from  the  second  to  the  high  school.     It  is  a 
product  of  conventional  methods  of  instruction  which  direct 
the  pupil's  attention  almost  exclusively  to  parts,  but  sel- 
dom to  the  largest  wholes.     Pupils  are  required  habitually 
to  read  a  single  paragraph,  or  a  limited  amount ;   ^^   orio-in 
they  are  questioned  on  a  single  paragraph  ;  they  "^  ^^  ^^^^* 
"reproduce"   a    single    paragraph.     Whenever   the  ques- 


46  LEARNING   TO   READ 

tioning  or  the  reproduction  is  more  extended,  it  involves 
merely  a  series  of  paragraphs,  taken  in  succession ;  the 
effect  is  tlie  same  as  though  only  one  paragraph  were  con- 
sidered. 

There  are  many  other  even  more  pernicious  practices  in 
school   reading    which    obscure    its   real   purpose.     They 

18.  Even  would  uot  be  mentioned  here  were  they  not  so 
™°'^®  .  i:)revalent  even  in  "  our  best  schools."     A  lesson 

pernicious       i 

practices  ''  bcgius  whcrc  it  was  left  off,"  which  means 
not  that  the  thought  is  taken  up  from  the  point  to  which 
it  had  been  developed,  but  simply  that  the  reading  is  begun 
on  the  page,  at  the  paragraph  and  line  at  which  it  stopped 
at  the  last  lesson.  Pui:)ils  read  brief  passages  one  after 
another  until  the  "  time  is  up,"  when  "  books  closed  "  and 
"  books  away  "  end  the  exercise.  If  the  end  of  the  selec- 
tion is  reached  before  the  "  time  is  up,"  the  "  next  "  reader 
begins  the  next  selection  without  a  pause,  or  he  may  be 
told  to  '"  turn  back  to  the  beginning  "  ;  it  really  makes 
little  difference  which  he  does  under  these  conditions. 
Another  simple  and  attractive  method  of  determining  the 
length  of  the  exercise  is  to  "  read  around  the  class  once." 

A  pupil  accustomed  to  this  kind  of  instruction  is  often 
able  to  reproduce  a  long  story  step  by  step  as  it  was  read, 
giving  ecpial  emphasis  to  all  details,  but  is  quite  helpless 

19.  The        before  the  questions.  What  is  it  really  all  about  ? 

Ss  the  ^^^^^^^  ^^  *^^®  g'^*^'  ^^'^^^^  ^'^  *^^^  P^^^^  ^^  ^^  ^^^  •  ^^^^' 
point  indeed,  should  he   know   what  it  is  all  about  ? 

Vf  hy  should  he  see  any  point  to  it  ?     The  points  which 


TPIE   METHOD   EXPLAINED  47 

have  been  kept  most  consistently  and  conspicnonsly  before 
him  are  to  '^  know  the  place  "  when  he  is  called ;  to  read 
his  little  asssignment  withont  "  miscalling  any  words "  ; 
perhaps  to  "tell  what  he  has  just  read."  If  his  thought 
ever  rises  to  the  stage  of  grasping  the  whole  of  a  story  in 
its  significance,  it  is  no  credit  to  his  instruction.  The  best 
influence  of  that  is  to  keep  him  entirely  occupied  Avith 
details,  which  are  treated  as  though  they  were  complete  in 
themselves. 

From  the  first  reading  lesson,  day  after  day  and  year  after 
year,  attention  has  been  devoted  almost  exclusively  to 
details ;  fi.rst  it  was  the  word,  then  it  was  the  20.  Details 
sentence,  finally  it  was  the  paragraph.  These  eS^bfsiad 
details  have  been  treated  as  ends  instead  of  of  means 
means,  as  wholes  instead  of  parts.  The  resultant  effect 
on  the  pupil  is  just  what  we  find,  just  what  we  might  have 
predicted  in  the  beginning. 

All  these  details  are  important,  all  these  details  must  be 
studied;  but  they  are  important  and  they  are  to 
be  studied  not  in  themselves  alone,  but  as  parts  place  of 
of  larger  wholes  to  which  they  belong.      These 
larger  wholes  themselves  must  be  grasped  and  mastered, 
not  as  a  result  of  long  years  of  training  in  reading,  but 
from  the  very  beginning  —  the  first  day  and  every  day. 

The  practical  meaning  of  this,  in  a  word,  is  that  from 
the    very    outset    we    must    teach    our    pupils  22.  what 
to    grasp   the   Avhole,  as  well   as   the  parts,   of  J^^stbe 
everything  they  read.     Indeed,  they  have  not  the  outset 
really  read  a  selection  until  they  have  grasped  it  as  a  whole. 


48  LEARNING   TO   READ 

This  is  not  impossible,  nor  even  especially  difficult,  if  only 
the  object  is  kept  consistently  before  us,  and  suitable  means 
are  used  to  attain  it. 

In  the  low  primary  grades,  ^vhere  its  attainment  seems 
most  difficult,  we  have  many  indirect  aids.     The  teacher's 

23.  Aids  in  story,  the  rhyme,  the  picture,  and  the  drama- 
mary  ^'^  tizatiou,  are  all  excellent  means  of  stimulating 
grad:s  j^j^j  disciplining  connected  and  continuous 
thought. 

Throughout  the  grades  "  reproduction  "  exercises  may 
be    made    most    elfectiv^e    means    of    securing   the   end 

24.  Th3  sought.  As  too  often  used,  however,  these 
profitable      exei'cises   only   serve   the   more  surely   to  brino; 

use  of  "  re-  "^  J  o 

production"  about  the  results  we  deplore ;  they  are  made  to 
exercises  cousist  in  doiug  ovcr  again  just  Mdiat  the  pupil 
did  in  reading,  and  doing  it  in  tlie  same  order  and  in  the 
same  way.  The  pupil  merely  repeats  in  order  the  detailed 
thoughts,  often  using  almost  or  quite  the  words  in  which 
they  were  originally  expressed. 

Pupils  must  be  trained  to  reproduce,  stretching  the  con- 
ventional meaning  of  this  term,  whatever  may  be  called 
for,  a  single  thought,  a  larger  thought,  or  the  whole  ;  and 
tliey  must  be  trained  to  reproduce  these  thoughts  and  the 
wli(jle  briefly,  concisely,  and  in  their  own  language.  A 
brief  reproduction,  very  much  l)riefer  than  the  original,  if 
it  is  really  a  reproduction,  of  the  essential  thought  of  the 
original,  is  of  much  more  value  than  an  extended  repro- 
duction.    It  requires  that  the  pupil  really  make  the  thought 


THE   METHOD   EXPLAINED  49 

his  own,  condense  it,  and  put  it  into  his  own  language. 
To  reproduce  in  two  minutes  and  in  250  words  what  lias 
been  read  in  a  half  hour  and  in  40U0  words  is  an  exercise 
whose  disciplinary  value  is  never  exhausted. 

The  vast  difference  between  real  reading,  and  all  exer- 
cises that  merely  resemble  reading  more  or  less  remotely, 
is  the  difference  between  thinkinsj;  and  not  think- 

.    ,  ^  25.  Read- 

ing, between   mental   activity   and   mental   pas-  ingis 

sivity.  It  is  absurd  to  say  that  your  pupils  are  ^°  ^"^ 
good  readers  but  poor  thinkers ;  such  pupils  never  existed. 
You  cannot  make  a  child  a  good  reader  without  at  the 
same  time  making  him  a  good  thinker.  Direct  yoiu'  efforts 
more  to  the  child's  thinking  and  less  exclusively  to  the 
outward  activities  involved  in  reading  and  the  desired  re- 
sults will  be  more  surely  and  speedily  attained. 

13.    Expression 

In  the  last  section  we  discussed  reading  from  the  stand- 
point of  the  mental  processes  involved ;  we  tried  to  look 
inside  the  little  reader's  mind  and  see  Avhat  goes  on,  and 
what  ought  to  go  on,  there.  We  now  turn  our  attention 
to  those  outward  activities  involved  in  oral  reading,  which 
are  summed  up  under  the  term  "  expression." 

Good  expression  in  reading  is  a  result  of  two  tilings, 
thinking  and  imitation.     The  teacher  who  prac-  i.  Expres- 
tically  assumes  that  expression  depends  on  only  suit  of*" 
one  of  these,  be   that   one   wliicli   it   may,  will  tiiipking 

^  ^  "^  ^  ^  and  imita- 

achieve  no  great  success  in  teaching  oral  reading,  tion 
It  would  probably  be  hard  to  find  a  teacher  who  would 


50  LEARNING  TO  READ 

thoughtfully  maintain  that  imitation  alone  will  make  reall}? 
good  readers,  yet  in  practice  many  seem  to  depend  upon 
imitation  almost  exclusively,  and  still  more  resort  to  this 
process  frequently  when  only  better  thinking  on  tlie  part 
of  the  child  can  produce  the  result  desired.  On  the  other 
hand,  teachers  are  numerous  who  believe  that  if  only  the 
child  can  be  made  to  think  and  to  feel  what  he  reads,  ap- 
propriate expression  will  follow  of  itself.  There  is  evi- 
dently need  of  a  discriminating  appreciation  of  the  role 
which  both  tliinking  and  imitation  play  in  good  reading. 

Without  thinking  there  can  be  no  really  good  expres- 
sion. In  order  to  express  appropriately  what  he  reads, 
the  child  must  actively  think  the  thoughts  and  really 
2  The  role  ^^^^  ^^^  cmotions  whicli  he  is  trying  to  express 
of  thinking  tlirougli  spokcn  words.  This  mental  state  on 
the  part  of  the  reader  is  the  foundation,  the  source,  the 
substance,  of  his  expression ;  it  gives  to  his  expression  that 
ring  of  sincerity  which  cannot  be  produced  by  mere  imita-' 
tion. 

Expression,  as  a  fact,  is  natural,  spontaneous  ;  its  form, 
however,  is  largely  shaped  by  imitation,  conscious  or  un- 
conscious.    The  development  of  language  is   natural   to 
the  little   child.     On   entering   school  he    is  master  of  a 
spoken  vocabulary  which  he  uses,  more  or  less 

3.  The  role  .... 

of  imita-       effectively,  in  expressing  his  thoughts  and  feel- 
ings.    The  words  of  his  vocabulary,  the  manner 
of    putting  them  together,  he  has  acquired  by  imitating 
those  about  him.     So,  too,  largely,  but  not  entirely,  has 


THE   METHOD  EXPLAIXED  51 

he  acquired  his  habits  of  emphasis  and  inflection  tlirougli 
imitation.  His  personal  peculiarities  of  voice  and  manner 
give  individuality  to  his  expression.  But  as  tlie  child's 
vocabulary  on  entering  school  is  limited,  so  are  his  habits 
of  expression.  Both  vocabulary  and  expression  will  con- 
tinue to  develop  through  imitation.  The  teacher  must  not 
ignore  this  fact. 

The  child  will  imitate.     The  teacher  is  largely  respon- 
sible for  what  he  imitates,  and  the  results.     Without  any 
model  which  is  made  to  appeal  to  him  consciousl}',  the 
child  imitates  unconsciously  the  miscellaneous  reading  of 
his  classmates.     The  result  is  always  retrogression,  never 
improvement    in    expression ;    the    whole    class  4   Models 
grades    downward    instead    of     upward.      The  ll^^^^^^' 
teacher  must  keep  consciously  and  constantly  be-  quired 
fore   her   children  strong  models  of  good  expression,  of 
good  reading.     Only  by  a  strong  positive  guidance  which 
every  pupil  feels  and  to  which  he  consciously  responds  can 
the  teacher  counteract  and  overcome  the  many  negative 
but  injurious  influences  to  which  the  pupil  is  necessarily 
subject;  only  by  such  guidance  can  the  teacher  grade  her 
class  steadily  upward. 

When  the  pupil  understands  what  he  is  reading,  but 
fails  to  express  it  adequately,  let  the  teacher  show  him 
how  ;  let  her  bring  out  strongly,  sometimes  with  exaggera- 
tion, the  points  which  have  been  weak  in  the  pupil's 
reading.  The  teacher  reads  thus,  not  that  the  pupil  may 
merely  imitate  lier  voice  mechanically,  but  for  the  purpose 


52  LEARNING   TO   READ 

of    stimulating  the  pupil's  thought  and  feeling,  of  mak- 
mu:  him  fully  realize  what  he  only  understood 

5.  The  ^  ^      ,  .  '^ 

effect  of  before,  and  letting  him  hear  how  another  ex- 
presses the  ideas  and  emotions  represented  on  the 
printed  page.  The  effect  of  frequent  stimulating  models 
from  the  teacher  is  not  mechanical  uniformity  of  expres- 
sion ;  it  cannot  be  that  so  long  as  each  pupil  really  thinks 
and  feels  what  he  tries  to  express.  The  effect  is  rather 
an  inspiration  and  a  conscious  effort  on  the  part  of  every 
child  to  express  what  he  reads  as  well  as  he  can. 

The  teacher  may  often  improve  the  expression  of  her 
pupils  quite  as  much  by  reading  something  else,  as  by 
6  The  reading  just  what  the  jDupils  read.  For  instance, 
teacher        ij^  dialogue,  Ict  the  teacher  take  the  part  of  one 

need  not  c      i  i 

read  for  the  of  the  Speakers,  and  the  ertect  on  the  expression 
^"^^  of   the  pupil   who  takes    the  part  of  the  other 

may  be  marked.  In  poetry  —  the  despair  of  so  many 
teachers,  the  aversion  of  so  many  pupils  —  let  the  teacher 
read  one  line,  the  pupil  the  next,  and  so  on  alternately, 
and  the  effect  both  on  the  pupil's  expression  and  attitude 
is  marvelous.  The  teacher  may  alternate  in  this  way, 
line  by  line,  with  the  class  reading  in  concert.  If  the 
stanzas  are  short,  not  over  four  lines,  the  alternation  may 
be  by  stanzas. 

It  is  a  great  advantage  to  be  able  to  suggest  to  a  pupil 
the  spirit  in  which  a  passage  or  selection  should  be  ren- 
dLU-ed  by  referring  him  to  a  type  with  which  he  is  familiar. 
Any  selection  or  passage  which  the  pupil  has  learned  to 


THE  METHOD  EXPLAINED  58 

read   well,  and  which  mvolves  the  expression  of  feeling 
similar  to  that  required  hy  the  passage  or  selec-  7   Refer- 
tion    hefore   him,    will    serve    as   a   type.     The  ^nceto 

^  ^  '^  i  types  of 

mere  question,  How  did  you  read  such  and  expression 
such  a  story  ?  or.  How  did  siich  and  such  an  one  speak  ? 
is  often  enough  to  cause  the  pupil  to  improve  his  render- 
mg  a  hundred  per  cent.  It  is  another  application  of  the 
principle  of  helping  the  pupil  to  use  the  knowledge  or 
the  power  which  he  has. 

If  the  teacher  is  discriminating  and  judicious,  she  may 
at  times  hold  up  the  reading  of  certain  pupils,  or  certain 
features  of  their  reading,  as  Avorthy  of  other  pupils'  emula- 
tion, each  in  his  own  way.  This  practice  is  stimulating 
to  all  concerned,  but  it  should  not  be  relied  on  exclu- 
sively to  furnish  suificient  models  of  good  reading. 

A  generous  and  intelligent  rivalry  in  reading  a  given 
passage  with  the  best  possible  expression  is  often  profit- 
able.    By  this  we  do  not  mean  to  suii-o-est  the 

•  /-  .   .  °°..      .  8.  InteUi- 

too  common  practice  01  requiring  one  pupil  after  gentrivairy 
another  to  "try"  a  passage  which  has  not  been  ^""^  ^^ 
satisfactorily  rendered.  The  usual  difficulty  is  that  no  one 
"  tries"  intelligently  ;  each  one  varies  the  expression  with 
the  vague  hope  that  the  teacher  may  consider  the  varia- 
tion an  improvement.  Finally  some  one  is  told  to  "  read 
on,"  and  no  one  is  wiser  for  the  several  ''trials,"  but  all 
are,  if  possible,  more  uncertain  than  in  the  beginning 
about  the  suitable  rendering  of  the  passage.  What  is 
needed  is  a  model,  a  standard,  toward  which  each  one  can 
strive  intelligently. 


54  LEARNING  TO   HEAD 

While  thought  aud  feeling  are  indispensable  to  good 
expression,  it  is  equally  true  that  good  expression  is  one 
of  the  best  means  of  arousing    the    appropriate   thought 

9.  Thought  ii-i^d  feeling.  The  two,  thought  aud  expression, 
si^ninf/pa-  ^^^allj  caunot  be  separated  in  fact  or  in  treat- 
rabie  meut.  Dramatizing,  which  has  already  been  dis- 
cussed, is  of  equal  aid  to  both.  The  teacher's  story,  live 
discussions  with  the  pupils  about  the  subject  of  tlieir  read- 
ing, intelligent  reproduction,  all  are  aids  both  to  thought 
and  expression. 

But  there  is  one  condition  which  perhaps  more  than 
anything  else  conduces  to  good  oral  reading  —  a  condi- 
tion, which,  strangely  enough,  is  seldom  supplied  in  the 
schoolroom.  That  condition  is  an  audience,  a  hearer  or 
hearers  in  whom  the  reader  must  try  to  arouse  the 
thoughts  and  feelings  represented  by  what  he  reads.     It 

10.  The  is  so  easy  to  supply  that  condition  —  there  are 
lacks  a  real  ^^Iways  those  present  who  might  be  an  audience 
audience  — ygt  the  usual  schoolrooui  routine  effectually 
prevents  its  realization.  The  reader  knows,  if  he  tiiinks 
of  the  matter  at  all,  that  at  best  his  classmates  are  listen- 
ing and  following  his  reading  in  their  books  that  they 
may  "  keep  the  place  "  and  see  whether  he  miscalls  any 
words.  They  have  already  read  what  he  is  reading,  or 
if  not,  they  are  now  getting  their  ideas  from  their  books 
rather  than  from  his  reading.  Thus,  the  one  chief  pur- 
pose which  oral  reading  serves  outside  the  schoolroom  is 
almost  wholly  ruled  out  of  the  process  of  instruction  and 


THE  METHOD   EXPLAINED  55 

practice  in  that  art.  Because  tliis  necessary  condition  is 
absent,  the  one  final  test  of  good  oral  reading  is  seldom, 
if  ever,  applied  in  the  schoolroom.  That  is  the  practical 
test  which  determines  whether  the  reading  does  serve  its 
true  purpose ;  whether  it  does  adequately  convey  to 
hearers  the  thougrhts  and  emotions  which  the  reader  is 
trying  to  express. 

Nothing  could  be  easier  than  to  change  the  schoolroom 
routine  so  as  to  give  to  the  oral  reading  exercise  its  normal 
function,  and,  in  so  doing,  apply  to  each  reader  a  test  of 
his  performance.  It  is  only  necessary  to  let  the  n.  How  an 
reader  read  to  his  classmates,  who  listen  with  no  m^at^bTsup- 
books  before  them,  something  which  they  have  Pi^®<i 
not  already  read.  The  reader  may,  and  usually  should, 
thoroughly  prepare  what  he  is  to  read.  This  preparation 
he  can  make  as  part  of  his  seat  work. 

Probably  the  chief  reason  why  this  exercise  is  not  more 
employed  is  that  pupil-readers  are  not  able  to  hold  the 
attention  of  their  audience.  But  that  is  the  very  reason 
why  the  exercise  should  be  employed.  It  is  12.  The  ad- 
good  both  for  the  readers  and  the  hearers.  The  reader^and 
one  should  learn  to  read  effectively  to  an  audi-  bearers 
ence ;  the  others  should  learn  to  listen  effectively  to  a 
reader.  Effective  readino;  and  effective  listenino-  can  be 
learned  only  by  much  practice  under  conditions  that  com- 
pel the  reader  to  read  and  the  listener  to  listen  effectively. 

In   an   exercise   such    as    suggested   the   hearers   may 
be  made   to    serve  as  critics   in  a  way  that  will    really 


56  LEARNING  TO   READ 

help  the  reader  and  help  them.  In  general  the  extent 
13.  Helpful  to  which  the  hearers  are  made  to  listen  and 
criticism  understand  is  in  itself  a  measure  of  the  success 
of  the  reader's  performance.  But  more  specifically  the 
hearers,  as  critics,  should  be  trained  to  note  and  to  tell 
what  they  have  understood  well,  what  they  have  felt 
thoroughly,  and  why  they  have  so  understood  and  felt; 
conversely,  they  should  note  and  tell  w^hat  they  could 
not  understand,  and  if  possible,  give  the  reason  for  their 
failure  to  understand.  Criticism  of  this  kind  directs 
the  attention  of  hearers  and  reader  to  something  really 
vital.  It  is  very  different  from  that  criticism  which  is 
trained  to  note  nothing  but  miscalled  Avords  and  failures 
in  trivial  mechanical  details. 

It  is  not  intended  to  suggest  that  all  school  reading 
exercises  should  be  of  the  kind  described.  But  such 
exercises  should  have  a  growing  place  in  the  programme 
beginning  by  the  end  of  the  first  year  or  early  in  the 
second.  Care  and  judgment  should  be  used  in  choosing 
what  the  pupil  is  to  read.  The  selection  should  be  short 
and  interesting.  The  entire  selection  need  not  be  read 
by  a  single  pupil.  The  usual  exercises  should  be  con- 
sidered in  a  way  preparatory  to  this  test  exercise.  They 
should  serve,  so  far  as  possible,  to  overcome  the  w^eaknesses 
which  a  pupil  has  shown  in  really  reading  to  his  classmates. 


CHAPTER  II 

BOOKS,  CHARTS,  AND  OTHER  MATERIALS 

1.  The  Reading  Chart  and  the  First  Books 

The  Reading  Chart,  so  called  to  distinguish  it  from  the 
Phonic  Chart,  is  used  advantageously  at  the  beginning 
in  place  of  the  Primer.     With  the  Chart  before 

^  .  ,1.  Advan- 

them  the  teacher  can  readily  control  and  dn^ect  tages  of  the 

^  •  Ch3,rt 

the  attention  of  the  children  to  text  or  picture ; 
all  find  and  follow  easily  what  is  pointed  out ;  children 
quickly  learn   to   distinguish  the  words   and  follow  the 
lines  of  the  large  type ;  references,  which  all  can  see,  are 
easily  made  from  story  to  rhyme. 

The  Chart  does  not  relieve  the  teacher  of  the  necessity 
of  using  the  blackboard,  but  it  does  greatly  lessen  the 
amount  of  work  that  she  would  otherwise  need  to  present 
in  that  way. 

Tlie  first  twenty-one  pages  of  the  Chart  and  the  first  fift}'- 
five  pages  of  the  Primer  cover  the  same  work  and  are  nearly 
the  same.     The  rhymes  and  the  vocabulary  are  „   „    . 

J  -^2.  Begin- 

identical;  there  is  somewhat  more  reading  matter  ning  the 
in  the  Primer.     When  the  above  pages  of  the 
Chart  have  been  covered,  the  Primer  should  be  taken  up, 
advance  work  on  the  Chart  being  suspended. 

The  children  should  now  be  started  at  the  beginning 


58  LEARNING   TO   READ 

of  the  Primer.  On  account  of  their  work  on  the  Chart 
they  will  read  the  first  fifty-five  pages  very  readily.  This 
familiarity  with  the  first  work  in  the  book,  due  to  the 
work  with  the  Chart,  is  a  great  advantage,  helping  the  child 
to  become  accustomed  more  easily  than  would  otherwise 
be  possible  to  the  handling  and  use  of  the  book. 

The  work  will  continue  in  the  Primer  until  that  is 
completed.  The  rhymes  given  in  the  Primer  to  be  memo- 
rized, following  those  that  were  also  given  on  the  chart, 
should  be  placed  on  the  blackboards,  or  better,  on  separate 
charts,  and  kept  before  the  children  for  reference  as  long 
as  needed. 

When  the  Primer  is  completed,  the  children  start  on 
the  First  Reader.  They  should  be  given  an  easy  intro- 
duction  to  this  book,  by  going  back  to  the  Chart 
First  and  completing  that  from  the  point  where  the 

work  was  suspended  on  going  into  the  Primer. 
The  last  two  rhymes  of  the  Chart  are  identical  with  the 
first  two  rhymes  in  the  First  Reader,  and  the  matter 
immediately  following  these  rhymes  is  similar. 

With  most  classes  it  is  strongly  advised  that  both 
4.  Advis-  Chart  and  Primer  be  used.  But  the  work  has 
both  Chart  been  so  arranged  that  it  is  possible  to  dispense 
and  Primer   ^^,.  j.|^  g- ^j^^^  ^^^^  q^ihy^  or  the  Primer,  not  with  both. 

If  the  Primer  is  not  used,  work  is  continued  in  the 
When       Chart    until    that    is    completed.     As    already 

the  Primer  noted,  the  latter  part  of  the  Chart  overlaps, 
so   to  speak,  the  first  few  pages  of   the    First 

Reader.     This  overlapping  facilitates  the  transition  from 


BOOKS,   CHARTS,   AND   OTHER  MATERIALS  59 

the  Chart  to  the  First  Reader.  Going  directly  from  the 
Chart  to  the  First  Reader  leaves  no  gap  in  the  child's 
vocabulary.  The  advance  in  reading  matter  is  well 
graded,  but  the  difficulties  increase  more  rapidly  than  they 
do  in  the  Primer.  When  the  Primer  is  used,  the  child  not 
only  gets  consideraljle  practice  with  easily  graded  reading, 
but  he  anticipates  a  large  part  of  the  vocabulary  of  the 
first  part  of  the  First  Reader.  Thus  he  is  doubly  prepared 
to  take  up  that  book. 

Children  who,  on  account  of  age  or  limited  natural 
capacity,  tend  to  advance  slowly,  ought  by  all  means  to 
take  the  Primer;  children  who  advance  rapidly  and  surely 
may  safely  omit  it. 

The  Chart  may  be  dispensed  with.  It  is  a  great  advan- 
tage, as  already  pointed  out ;  but  it  contains  nothing 
which  is  not  contained  in  the  Primer.      If  the 

.  1       1        T^   •  c  •      c   1      ^-  When 

Chart  is  not  used,  the  Primer,  of  course,  is  lol-  the  chart  is 
lowed  from  the  beginning.  The  first  part  of  the 
work,  twenty  pages  at  least,  should  be  presented  on  the 
blackboard.  Such  presentation  will  supply  in  a  measure 
the  lack  of  the  chart.  It  is  strongly  advised  that  the 
Chart  be  used  with  all  classes. 

2.   Cards 

There  are  two  kinds  of  cards  for  class  drill,  "  word  " 
cards  and  '^  consonant  "  cards. 

Of  the  word  cards  there  are  two  sets.  The  small  set 
contains  all    the    words   used    on   the    Reading    Chart; 


60  LEARNING   TO   READ 

the  large  set  contains  all  the  words  used  in  the  Primer. 

1.  Word  "T^®  small  set  is  used  only  when  the  Primer  is 
cards  j^ot  used  ;  whenever  the  Primer  is  used,  whether 
with  the  Reading  Chart  or  not,  the  large  set  of  word  cards 
is  used.  Each  word  card  contains  one  sight  word,  both  in 
script  and  in  print.  For  convenience  the  same  word  is 
printed  on  both  sides  of  the  card. 

The  consonant  cards,  twenty-three  of  them,  contain  the 
following   consonants    and  combinations    of    consonants: 

2.  conso-      ^5  t',  d,  f,  (J,  h,  j,  h,  I,  m,  n,  ;9,  qu,  r,  s,  t,  v,  iv,  y, 

nant  cards      ^,/^^    gj^^  ^/^^  .^y/^        Q^^    q^^q    ^[^\q    ^f    ^\^q   q^j,^  jg  ^^lq 

consonant  alone  in  two  forms,  the  capital  and  the  small 
letter.  On  the  other  side  is  the  word  from  which  the  con- 
sonant, forming  the  initial  letter  of  the  word,  was  learned ; 
underneath  the  initial  consonant  of  the  word  is  the  same 
consonant  standino;  alone. 

Both  the  word  and  the  consonant  cards  are  used  in  class 

drills  for  the  purpose  of  perfecting  the  association  of  the 

appropriate  spoken  words  and   sounds  with   the  written 

forms,  so  that  the  one  will  instantly  suo-gest  the 

3.  How  '  .  J         0& 

cards  are  other.  In  thesc  drills  much  concert  work  can  be 
done  to  advantage.  The  teacher  holds  her  pack 
of  cards  directly  in  front  of  her  about  on  a  level  with  her 
face.  She  takes  a  card  from  the  back  of  the  pack  and 
places  it  in  front  of  the  pack,  without  turning  it  over  or 
around.  As  the  same  word  or  consonant  is  on  both  sides 
of  the  card  she  can  see  what  that  is  as  she  takes  the  card 
from  the  back  of  the  pack. 


BOOKS,  CHARTS,   ANb  OTHER  MATERIALS  61 

To  make  this  concert  work   thoroughly  successful,  all 
pupils  should  give  perfect  attention.     One  or  a  ^   success- 
few  must  not  lead  and  the  rest  fall  in  behind  in  fui  concert 
their  responses;  all  should  answer   together  as 
one  voice.     To  secure  such  response,  it  should  be  under- 
stood that  the  teacher  will  hold  the   card  still  an  instant 
beside  the  pack  before  placing  it  in  front ;  when  it  moves 
to  the  front  of  the  pack,  all  are  to  give  the  word  or  sound 
together.     This  slight  pause  enables  the  slower  as  well  as 
the  quicker  ones  to  prepare  to  answer  at  the  signal,  the 
moving  of  the  card  to  the  front  of  the  pack.     This  pause 
may  be  lengthened  if  pupils  are  just  learning  words,  or  if 
some  are  slow  in  their  recognition. 

This  concert  drill  work  should  be  quick  and  sharp.  So 
conducted  it  is  valuable  as  a  mental  gymnastic,  as  well  as 
serving  to  produce  the  desired  results  in  a  fraction  of  the 
time  required  by  individual  drill.  There  should  be  suffi- 
cient individual  drill  to  make  sure  that  all  pupils  are 
really  getting  the  words  and  sounds  correctly. 

The  various  other  ways  in  which  these  cards,  particu- 
larly the  word  cards,  are  used,  are  fully  described  in  the 
detailed  directions  in  subsequent  chapters. 

3.  Rhyme  Charts  and  Cards 

As  they  are  taught,  the  rhymes  are  kept  in  plain  view, 
either  on  the  jjlackboard  or  on  large  manila  charts,  so 
that  pupils  may  readily  turn  to  them  for  reference.  When 
a  pupil  reading  fails  to  recognize  a  word,  the  teacher  re- 


62  lp:arxing  to  read 

fers  him  to  the  chart  containing  the  rhyme  in  which  the 
word  occurs.  (See  page  5,  Sec.  3.)  This  is  done  repeat- 
edly until  the  pupil  has  formed  the  habit  of  referring  to 
the  rhymes  for  any  unknown  words,  without  direction 
from  the  teacher. 

For  their  individual  reading  at  their  seats,  each  pupil 
is  provided  with  a  cai'd  containing  the  first  seventeen 
rhymes.  The  pupil  uses  this  card  for  reference  just  as  he 
uses  the  large  rhyme  charts  in  his  oral  reading. 

4.     The  Phonic  Chart 

The  Phonic  Chart  comes  into  use  immediately  after  the 
completion  of  the  Reading  Chart  or  the  Primer  and  is  used 
constantly  throughout  the  remainder  of  the  first  year  and 
during  the  second  and  third  years.  Consequently,  as  a 
matter  of  convenience,  this  chart  is  published  in 
thePhoaic  Combination  with  the  Reading  Chart,  and  also 
Chart  is  separately.  The  combined  Phonic  and  Reading 
Chart  can  best  be  used  in  the  first  year,  the  sepa- 
rate Phonic  Chart  in  the  second  and  third  years.  The 
Phonic  Chart  is  reproduced  page  by  page  in  this  manual, 
Chapter  XXIII. 

The  Phonic  Chart  contains  one  hundred  and  sixty-seven 
'•  series  "  or  '•  families  "  of  Avords,  the  words  of  each  series 
«  ,Trv  . ...    containing;  the  same  vowel,  or  vowel  combination, 

2.  What  the  '^  '  ' 

Phonic  Chart  with  the  sauic  souud.  These  words  are  so  ar- 
contains  j^auged  in  columns  that  the  child  readily  recog- 
nizes the  common   sound  elements  and  their  representa- 


BOOKS,  CHARTS,   AND  OTHER  MATERIALS  63 

tion  in  all  the  words  ;  with  these  he  combines  the  initial 
consonant  sounds  which  he  has  learned  by  thorough  drill. 
The  pronunciation  of  the  series  of  words  is  thus  easy. 
Following  these  one  hundred  and  sixty-seven  series  are 
thirty-three  series  of  miscellaneous  words,  each  series  still 
based,  however,  on  a  common  vowel  with  a  uniform  sound. 

The  words  of  this  chart  have  been  selected  and  arranged 
with  great  care.  They  not  only  serve  the  purpose  of 
training  in  phonics  ;  they  are  all  words  representing  simple 
ideas  in  common  use  by  children.  Most  of  them  will  be 
found  already  in  the  spoken  vocabulary  of  the  English- 
speaking  child ;  the  rest  of  them  are  readily  acquired. 
The  chart  contains  altogether  over  two  thousand  different 
words,  a  fairly  good-sized  reading  vocabulary.  3.  character 
But  the  primary  purpose  of  this  chart  is  not  to  oJ^the"^^°^* 
furnish  the  child  with  a  complete  reading  vocab-  Phonic  chart 
ulary;  it  is  to  assist  him  in  forming  the  habit  of  pronun- 
ciation —  the  habit  of  analyzing  words  and  of  associat- 
ing certain  sounds  with  certain  letters  and  combinations 
of  letters.  This  habit  pats  within  the  child's  power  a 
reading  vocabulary  practically  limited  only  by  his  experi- 
ence and  understanding.  Although  the  treatment  of 
phonics  in  this  chart  is  not  complete,  and  is  not  intended 
to  be  complete,  it  has  been  found  to  be  quite  sufficient  to 
serve  its  purpose ;  trained  with  this  chart  and  in  other 
ways  which  this  reading  method  provides,  pupils  do  ac- 
quire the  habit  desired. 

In   subsequent   chapters  the  order   of    taking  up   the 


ei  LEARNING   TO   READ 

work  with  the  Phonic  Chart  is  indicated  in  detail.     In 
i>;eneral  the  recrular  series  are  taken  up  in  about 

4.  Order  of     ^  i  •  i  •    ,         ,  i    •  , 

taking  up  the  Order  m  winch  they  are  presented  m  the 
e  series  ^[jf^j.|^  Usually  a  series  is  taken  up  for  the  first 
time  when  its  initial  word  or  words  occur  in  the  regular 
reading  lesson.  The  series  is  frequently  reviewed.  The 
reference  numbers  at  the  head  of  each  column,  indicating 
other  series  in  which  the  same  vowel  and  vowel  sound 
occur,  but  in  a  different  vowel  combination,  enable  the 
teacher  to  make  review  drills  very  effective.  As  much 
and  as  varied  practice  as  necessary  can  be  quickly  given 
with  the  same  vowel.  Finally,  the  miscellaneous  series, 
Nos.  168  to  200,  afford  opportunity  for  testing  the  pupil's 
power  to  recognize  and  to  give  the  elementary  sounds  in 
more  difficult  combinations. 

In  all  work  with  this  chart  the  teacher  must  insist  on 

correct  and  distinct  articulation.     The  series,  furnishing  as 

they  do  all  possible  combinations  of  consonant  sounds  with 

fixed  vowel  sounds,  offer  excellent  material  for 

5.  Distinct  .    ,  .,.,..  •      .  rr^ 

enunciation  practicing  pupils  HI  distinct  enuuciation.  The 
require  separation  of  the  initial  consonant  or  consonants 
from  the  vowel  or  vowel  combination  helps  the  child  to 
analyze  the  word  into  its  elementary  sounds  and  to  give 
these  distinctly.  Where  the  separation  of  letters  occurs,  a 
slight  pause,  for  the  sake  of  distinctness,  may  be  made  in 
the  pronunciation.  This  pause  should  be  very  slight  and 
should  be  made  only  during  the  first  practice  with  a  series  ; 
thereafter  the  words  of  the  series  should  be  pronounced 
as  they  are  in  regular  reading. 


BOOKS,   CHARTS,   AND  OTHER   MATERIALS  65 

The  habit  of  distorting  words  by  over-analysis,  empha- 
sis, and  separation  of  their  elementary  sounds  is  g  ^^^.^^ 
most  pernicious.     It  is  formed  at  the  cost  of  much  ™"st  not  be 

.  .  1111  distorted  in 

time  and  eiiort  m  separatmg  sounds  that  belong  pronunda- 
together ;  it  is  overcome  by  the  expenditure  of 
still  more  time  and  effort  on  "  blend "  drills  Avhich  the 
habit  alone  makes  necessary.     Pupils  should  be  taught  at 
all  times  to  pronounce  words  correctly. 

A  considerable  amount  of  concert  work,  after  the  teacher 
has  made  sure  that  all  pupils  are  giving  the  correct  sounds, 
may  be  employed  to  advantage.  The  teacher  should  use  a 
pointer  to  indicate  the  words  to  be  pronounced.  The  pupils 
should  become  able  to  give  any  word  in  the  series  without 
hesitation.  They  should  also  be  practiced  in  "  skipping" 
freely  from  one  scries  to  another  on  the  same  7.  concert 
page  of  the  chart ;  that  is,  within  series  on  which  ^"^pj^JiJc 
they  have  already  been  separately  practiced.  In  Chart 
this  concert  work  the  teacher  should  keep  pupils  together 
in  their  answers,  not  allowing  one  or  a  few  to  lead  and 
the  others  to  follow.  This  may  readily  be  done  by 
insisting  that  the  word  be  given  immediately  when  the 
pointer  is  removed  from  the  word,  not  when  the  pointer 
first  touches  it.  While  the  pointer  rests  on  a  word, 
a  length  of  time  of  course  always  very  brief  but  to  be 
varied  according  to  the  requirements  of  the  class,  all 
pupils  must  determine  what  the  word  is  and  so  be  ready 
to  give  it  instantly  at  the  signal,  which  is  the  removal  of 
the  pointer. 


66  LEARNING  TO  READ 

The  series  of  the  chart  should  not  serve  merely  for  drill 

in  phonics.     Pupils   should  use  the  words  in   sentences. 

There  will  be  very  few  words  that  some  child  in  the  class 

will  not  be  able  to  use  correctly.     At  first  this 

8.  Words  to  '' 

be  used  in  can  be  Only  oral ;  but  by  the  second  year  sen- 
tences may  be  written.  This  makes  a  good  lan- 
guage exercise.  By  requiring  pupils  to  use  the  words,  the 
teacher  readily  learns  which  words  are  not  in  the  chil- 
dren's spoken  vocabulary. 

If  the  idea  which  the  word  represents  is  foreign  to  the 
children,  the  teacher  should  help  them  to  get  the  idea  by 
objects,  pictures,  descriptions,  or  such  means  as  can  be  used 
most  effectively.  Thus,  both  the  ideas  and  the  vocabulary 
of  the  children  are  enriched. 

The  chart  may  also  be  used  to  great  advantage  as  a 
spelling  chart.  The  careful  analysis  of  words  into  their 
elementary  sounds  and  the  association  of  these  sounds  with 
the  letters  representing  them  is  the  best  possible  prepara- 
tion for  spelling;.      To  spell  a  word  orally  —  and 

9.  Spelling  .  .  .    , 

oral  spelling  should  precede  written  —  a  child 
has  only  to  name  in  order  the  letters  which  he  already 
knows  how  to  sound  in  pronouncing  the  word.  In  spelling, 
a  word  should  always  be  pronounced  distinctly  and 
thoughtfully  —  that  is,  with  attention  focused  on  the  ele- 
mentary sounds  of  the  word  —  before  it  is  spelled ; 
pronunciation  after  the  word  is  spelled  serves  no 
purpose.  For  children  just  beginning  spelling  and  for 
others   who   have   difficulty    in   associating   letters   with 


BOOKS,   CHARTS,   AND  OTHER  MATERIALS  67 

their  sounds,  it  is  helpful  to  spell  the  word  "  by  sound," 
after  it  is  pronounced,  before  spellhig  it  by  letters. 

With  most  classes  oral  spelling  may  well  begin  by  the 
middle  of  the  first  year.  Up  to  this  time  it  is  better  that 
reference  be  made  to  the  letters  by  their  sounds  jq.  orai 
rather  than  by  their  names.  No  formality  is  spening 
necessary  in  introducing  the  names  of  the  letters.  The 
teacher  has  only  to  call  them  by  name ;  she  will  find  that 
the  children  will  recognize  most  of  them  by  name  at  once. 
Before  the  end  of  the  first  year  the  children  should  learn 
to  "say  the  alphabet."  This  can  best  be  done  by  concert 
repetitions. 

In  written  spelling  the  child  should  be  taught  to  think 

the  sounds  of  the  word  and  the  letters  representing  them ; 

his   thouo;ht   guides   his   hand    in   making    the 

11   Writ- 
correct  letters.     Only  as  a  result  of  much  practice  ten  speii- 

will  the  hand  acquire  the  habit  of  spelling  auto-  *°^ 
matically.     The  formation  of  this  habit  is  facilitated,  not 
hindered,  by  the  guidance   of  conscious  attention ;  when 
that  guidance  becomes  unnecessary,  it  will  be  spontane- 
ously withdrawn. 

The  arrangement  of  the  words  in  series  greatly  facili- 
tates the  learning  of  their  spelling.  A  series  of  twenty 
words  may  be  more  easily  learned  than  five  jg  Advan- 
taken  miscellaneously.     The  spelling;,  of  course,  tageofthe 

•^  ,  series  in 

should  not  be  confined  to  the  serial  order.     Just  speuing 
as  in  pronunciation,  when  a  few  series  have  been  learned, 
words  should  be  taken  from  any  of  these  series.     Thus 


68  LEARNING  TO  READ 

review  exercises  in  spelling,  which  should  be  frequent,  may 
best  be  made  up  of  words  selected  from  several  series  and 
miscellaneously  arranged.  There  are  also  many  little 
words  in  constant  use  by  the  child,  as  soon  as  he  begins  to 
write,  which  do  not  occur  in  these  series ;  they  are  phon- 
ically  irregular.  These  words  must  be  learned  separately. 
By  the  middle  or  end  of  the  third  year,  children  can 
readily  learn  to  spell  all  the  words  given  in  the  phonic 
13.  What  chart,  together  with  a  few  hundred  other  com- 
third-year     ^j^^^^  short  words.     Tliis  makes  a  very  respectable 

pupils  can  "^  ^ 

learn  vocabulary  of  about  twenty-five  hundred  words, 

no  inconsiderable  accomplishment  for  a  third-grade  pupil. 
But  this  accomplishment  really  involves  something  more 
than  ability  to  spell  these  twenty-five  hundred  words; 
it  involves  the  acquisition  of  a  power  to  master  new  words. 
The  pupil  trained  to  spell  in  this  way  instinctively  analyzes 
new  words,  discerns  at  once  their  regularities  and  irregu- 
larities, applies  his  habit  of  associating  certain  letters  or 
combinations  of  letters  with  certain  sounds,  and  thus 
greatly  reduces  the  difficulties  which  confront  most  pupils 
who  have  learned  to  spell  word  by  word. 

5.   Script  and  Print 

Pupils  are  best  taught  from  the  beginning  to  read  both 
1.  Pupils  script  and  print  w^ith  equal  facility.  This  is 
rtlTs*c°ript  '^1^  ^''•'^y  matter,  if  it  is  not  made  difficult.  It 
and  print  jg  Qj-^]y  ncccssary  to  use  both  script  and  print 
first  constantly.     The  first  rhymes  should   be  writ- 

ten on  the  blackboard,  and  read  by  the  pupils  from  the 


BOOKS,  CHARTS,   AND  OTHER  MATERIALS  69 

board  as  well  as  from  the  chart.  All  the  work  which 
the  teacher  presents  on  the  board,  and  that  must  be  con- 
siderable even  with  the  use  of  the  Reading  Chart,  should 
be  in  script.  The  word  cards  contain  both  the  printed 
and  the  written  forms  of  each  word  for  the  purpose  of 
making  pupils  equally  familiar  with  both. 

The   teacher   should  no   more  take  the  time  to  print 
words  for  the  children,  with  the  thought  that  the  printed 
is  easier  for  them  than  the  written  form,  than  2.  Teacher 
she  should  teach  them  to  print  before  writing  ^^j.'ite'^iiot 
words.     One  form  is  as  easy  as  the  other.     Of  p^"^^ 
course,  the  script   put  before  the  children  should  be  very 
distinct   and   plain,   without  unnecessary   and    confusing 
marks  and  flourishes. 

6.   Seat  Work 

The    seat  work  is  not   mere  "busy  work,"  something 
whose  chief  purpose  is  to  keep  the  children  at  their  seats 
quietly  occupied  while  the  teacher  carries  on  a  1.  seat 
recitation.      The    proper   use   of    every   device,  mere-busy 
every    exercise,    contributes  something    to    the  "«^ork  • 
great  result  sought  —  the  power  to  read  independently. 

The  seat  work  throughout  requires  thought,  discrimina- 
tion, and  judgment  on  the  part  of  the  pupil — •  ^  ^^^^ 
such  thought,  discrimination,  and  iudgment  as  the  seat 

work  rc- 

he    is  capable   of  exercising.     It   requires   that  quires  and 

the  pupil  apply  independently  his  knowledge  of 

w^ords,  letters,  and  sounds  as  he  acquires  this  knowledge. 


70  LEARNING   TO   READ 

Through  the  seat  work  the  pupil  not  only  becomes  ready 
and  skillful  in  the  use  of  his  knowledge,  but  he  rapidly 
becomes  conscious  of  his  power,  learns  self-reliance,  and 
experiences  the  stimulating  sensation  of  personal  achieve- 
ment. 

That  the  seat  work  may  have  all  these  important  results 
and  many  more,  the  teacher  must  be  extremely  careful  of 

3.  How  the  ^^^^  conduct  of  the  work.  She  must  make  the 
seat  work     requirements  of  each  exercise  definite  and  clear 

should  be  ^  ^ 

handled  to  the  children,  and  she  must  take  time  and 
pains  to  see  that  the  children  carry  out  the  require- 
ments. These  requirements  should  always  be  within 
the  power  of  the  pupils  to  execute,  but  they  should  not 
be  too  easy.  An  exercise  or  the  use  of  a  device  should 
not  be  continued  after  it  has  been  so  thoroughly  mastered 
by  the  pupils  that  it  calls  forth  little  or  no  intelligent 
effort. 

It  is  not  expected  that  all  the  many  methods  and  de- 

4.  Good  vices  described  will  be  used  by  any  one  teacher 
judgment     q]\  ^\^q  time.     Good  iudo^ment  must  be  exercised 

necessary       ^  ^  j       o 

in  selecting  those  methods  and  devices  which 
will  best  accomplish  the  result  desired  with  any  given 
class  at  a  given  time. 

5  Readine  Since  children  learn  to  read  independently 
the  best        i^y  reading;  independently,  the  seat  work  should 

seat  work  .  ,  ,         •  n. 

consist  largely  in  reading  from  interesting 
books,  beginning  such  reading  soon  after  the  First 
Reader  is  taken  up. 


BOOKS,  CHARTS,   AND  OTHER  MATERIALS  71 

7.  Supplementary  Reading 

The  character  of  the  method  is  such  that  children  are 
in  no  way  confined  to  the  books   of    the  Aldine    series. 
They  are  taught  from  the  beginning  to  apply  j   pupiis 
the  knovvledtJre  they  have  —  be  it   a   word,  the  pot  limited 

o  -^  'to  Aldme 

sound  of  a  consonant,  or  of  a  vowel  combina-  Readers 
tion ;    hence   they   are   able    to   take    up    supplementary 
books   at   any  time   and  read  them  with  the   degree  of 
success  which  their  vocabulary  and  knowledge  of  phonics 
make  possible. 

It  is  advisable  to  confine   the   reading   to   the   Aldine 
Primer  until  that  is  completed.     When  the  pupils  are  well 
started  in  the  Aldine   First   Reader,  they  may  ^  .^^^^ 
profitably  carry  on  reading  continuously  in  sup-  suppiemen- 

ta,ry  read- 

plementary  books.     Their  supplementary  read-  ing  should 
ing  should  always  be  a  little  easier  than  their    ^^^^ 
regular  reading  in  the  Aldine  books. 

The  pupils  should  apply  and  the  teacher  should  help 
them  to  apply  the  same  principles  of  assisting  themselves 
in  the  supplementary  reading  which  they  apply  in  their 
regular   reading.      The   teacher   should   alwavs 

"^       3    Treat- 
know  just  what  knowledge  her  pupils  have  of  mentof 

words,  letters,  and  sounds ;  thus  she  may  help  tary'read-^ 

them  wisely  to  help  themselves.     In  the  supple-  ^°^ 

mentary  reading,  as  in  the  regular  reading,  the  teacher 

should  never  tell  the  pupils  words  which  they  are  capable 

of  making  out    for  themselves ;  she  should   assist    them, 


72  LEARNING  TO  READ 

when  necessary,  by  helping  them  to  analyze  words  and  to 
compare  new  with  old. 

Pupils  should  read  a  large  number  of  supplementary 
books,  of  the  grade  of  Primers  and  First  Readers,  during 
the  first  year.  Most  classes  will  also  be  able  to  read  sev- 
eral Second  Readers,  not  too  difficult. 

Supplementary  reading  should  go  along  with  the  regu- 
lar work  throughout  the  second  year.  After  the  second 
year,  when  all  pupils  should  be  fluent  readers  of  anything 
they  can  understand,  there  need  be  no  distinction  between 
the  supplementary  and  regular  reading.  The  habit  of 
self-help  through  knowledge  of  phonics,  a  habit  which  has 
long  been  well  established,  should  be  continued  and 
strengthened. 

During  the  first  two  years,  at  least,  regular,  systematic 
work  with  the  Aldine  books,  taken  in  order,  with  accom- 
4.  Supple-  panying  charts,  should  be  given  daily.  A  large 
^adine^  amount  of  Supplementary  reading  matter  is  nec- 
necessary  essary  to  give  the  pupils  ample  opportunity  to 
apply  their  power.  Supplementary  reading  will  usually  be 
taken  at  sight,  unless  it  be  something  which  pupils  have 
prepared  in  their  study  periods. 


CHAPTER   III 

THE  PRIMER,  PAGES  1-4 ;  THE  CHART,  PAGE    2 

Rhyme  I 

Come  away, 
Come  and  play. 

come         and         away         play 

(Chart,  p.  2  ;  Primer,  p.  3.) 
1.   Tell  the  following  story,  introducing  the  rhyme. 

The  Spring  Story 

Once  upon  a  time  a  little  boy  and  his  sister  asked  their 
mother  if  they  might  have  some  money  and  go  to  the 
store  and  buy  some  candy. 

"  No,  dears,"  answered  Mother, "  I  think  you 

.  "^  [Pages  2-4 1] 

have  had  all  the  candy  that  is  good  for  you  to- 
day.    Run  outdoors  and  play." 

Out  walked  the  two  children  and  sat  down  on  the  porch. 

"  I  don't  want  to  play,"  growled  the  boy. 

"  I  think  we  might  just  have  a  little  candy,"  whined  the 
girl.     So  they  sat  on  the  porch  and  pouted. 

The  little  birds  flew  from  tree  to  tree,  build- 

,       .       .  [Page  3;  41] 

mg  their  nests    and  smgnig.       They   were    so 
happy  because  spring  had  come. 

I'lhe  marginal  references  are  to  pages  and  marginal  numbers  of  this  Manual. 
These  references  should  be  carefully  studied. 

73 


74  LEARNING   TO   HEAD 

The  squirrels  frisked  and  chattered  on  the  lawn.  They, 
too,  were  glad  the  winter  was  over. 

Even  the  yellow  daffodils  in  the  garden  looked  up  and 
smiled  at  the  warm  sun. 

Every  one  seemed  happy  but  our  pouting  boy  and  girl. 

Along  the  street  came  a  crowd  of  boys  and  girls  run- 
ing,  laughing,  and  shouting.  They  were  just  as  happy  as 
the  birds  and  squirrels. 

When  they  saw  the  cross  little  boy  and  girl,  they  shouted, 
"  Stop  pouting.  Don't  you  know  spring  is  here  ?  Now 
is  the  time  to  J3lay  and  l^e  glad." 

Then  a  big  girl  who  was  leading  called, 

"  Come  away, 
Come  and  play." 

All  the  children  took  up  the  cry  and  shouted, 

"  Come  away, 
Come  and  play." 

They  w^ere  having  such  a  good  time  that  our 
boy  and  girl  could  feel  cross  no  longer.    Smiles 
chased  the  frowns  from  their  faces.     They  jumped  up  and 
ran  off  with  the  other  children,  laughing  and  singing, 

"  Come  away, 
Come  and  play." 

2.   Teach  the  rhyme.     Pupils  should  be  trained  to  repeat 

all  rhymes  with  good  expression,  with  exact  enunciation 

and  articulation.     They  should  memorize  them 

perfectly.     Frequent  repetition  will  accomplish 


THE   METHOD   APPLIED  75 

this  ;  but  the  repetition  should  not  be  a  merely  mechanical 
saying  of  the  words  over  and  over.  At  each  repetition, 
the  rh}Tne  should  be  actually  used  in  such  a  way  that  it 
expresses  an  appropriate  thought.  This  can  readily  be 
brought  about  through  the  use  of  the  story,  which  has 
already  repeated  the  rhyme  several  times.  After  telling 
the  story,  the  teacher  talks  with  the  children 

.  .  .  T-  [Page  2 :  2] 

about  it,  asking  such  questions  as  these :  What 
did  the  big  girl  leading  the  children  call  out  ?     Show  how 
the  other  children  called  to  the  little  boy  and  his  sister. 
\yhat  did  the  little  boy  and  girl  sing  as  they  ran  off  to 
play  with  the  other  children  ? 

In  answer  to  each  of  these  questions,  the  children  give 
the  rhyme.  Very  often  these  answers  should  be  in  con- 
cert. Thus  all  take  full  part,  the  stronger  helping  the 
slower. 

Again,  in  dramatizing  the  story,  the  rhyme  is  repeated 
over  and  over.  Thus,  when  the  story  has  been  told,  repro- 
duced by  questioning,  and  dramatized,  most  children  know 
the  rhyme  perfectly.  It  should  be  kept  fresh  in  their 
minds  by  daily  repetition  —  repetition  in  which  the  rhyme 
is  really  used,  not  merely  repeated. 

3.    Dramatizing-  the   rhyme.      The    following    manner   of 
dramatizing  this  rhyme  has  been  found  very  interesting 
to  the    children.     Select  a    child   for  a  leader. 
The  leader   skips  through  the  aisles  choosing 
several  children  to   join  him,  touching  each  lightly  and 
calling, 


76  LEARNING   TO  READ 

"  Come  away, 
Come  and  play." 

As  each  child  is  chosen  he  joins  the  company  of  skipping 
children  and  calls  with  them  the  words  of  the  rhyme. 

4.  Write  the  complete  rhyme  on  the  board  as  the  children 
repeat  it.  Require  pupils  to  look  at  the  board  wliile  they 
repeat  the  rhyme.  As  they  repeat  point  out,  that  is, 
measure  off,  each  word  thus  :  — 

Come  away, 

Come  and  play. 

or  thus, 


Come 
Come 


away, 
and  I  play. 


The  pointer,  cards,  or  the  hands  may  be  used  to  indicate 
just  the  limits  of  each  word. 

5.  Picture  study.  Only  a  few  of  the  illustrations  in 
Chart,  Primer,  and  Readers  are  definitely  referred  to  in 
this  Manual.  And  these  few  are  considered  only  in  a 
suggestive  way.  For  the  sake  of  concreteness  definite  ques- 
tions are  here  given  in  connection  with  certain  typical  pic- 
tures ;  but  these  questions  are  intended  to  suggest  to  the 
teacher  only  the  character  of  the  questions  which  may  arise 
in  the  picture  study.  In  the  study  of  any  given  picture,  the 
children  studying  it  determine  the  questions  to  ask.  Indeed, 
the  children  themselves,  w^ith  guidance  and  suggestion, 
will  ask  most  of  the  questions  and  answer  them,  too. 

All  the  pictiures  in  chart  and  books  are  deserving  of  care- 


THE   METHOD   APPLIED  77 

ful  study.     They  are  an  integral  part  of  the  stories,  poems, 
and  rhymes.     Beautiful    and  attractive  as  the 

.  .         .  [Pages  7-JiJ 

pictures  are,  their  greatest  value  lies  m  the 
thought  which  they  provoke.  The  page  or  half-page  occu- 
pied by  a*  picture  may  serve  the  child's  advancement  in 
thought  and  expression,  hence  in  reading,  more  than  the 
same  space  occupied  by  text.  But  that  they  may  perform 
this  service,  the  pictures  must  be  used.  To  neglect  the 
pictiu-es  is  to  neglect  one  of  the  most  valuable  features  of 
subject-matter  and  of  method. 

(Chart,  page  2  ;  Primer,  p.  4.)  Point  to  the  big  girl 
who  is  leading.  What  is  she  calling  ?  What  is  she  going 
to  play  ?  Tell  what  each  child  has  to  play  with.  Where 
do  the  pouting  boy  and  girl  live  ?  Can  you  see  them  ? 
Why  not  ?  What  will  all  the  children  call  when  they  see 
the  pouting  boy  and  girl  ? 

6.  Individual  work.  Individual  children,  one  after 
another,  repeat  the  rhyme,  pointing  to  each  word  as  it  is 
uttered. 

7.  Teacher  points  to'any  word  in  the  rhyme  and  requires  the  pupil 
to  tell  what  it  is.      If  he  cannot  tell  at  once,  he  should  be 
required  to  go  back  to  the  beginning  of  the  rhyme  and  to 
repeat  it  till  he  comes  to  the  word  he  does  not  ^  ^ 
know.     For  example,  suppose  the  teacher  should 

point  to.  the  word  and.  The  pupil  does  not  know  tlie 
word.  So  he  begins  at  the  beginning  of  the  rhyme  and 
reads,  "  Come  away.  Come  and  — ,  and.''  In  this  exercise, 
let  the  pupil  handle  the  pointer. 


78  LEARNING   TO   READ 

A  class  exercise  in  pointing  is  helpful  for  concentrated, 
rapid  drill  on  words  in  the  rhyme.  The  teacher  directs, 
"All  point  to  co7ne,  to  away,  to  play,  to  anciy  The 
teacher  touclies  the  correct  word  each  time,  pronouncing 
it  as  she  does  so.  The  pupils  point  with  the  forefinger 
to  each  word,  following  the  direction  of  the  teacher,  and 
pronouncing  the  word  as  they  point.  The  teacher  then 
calls  any  word  in  the  rhyme  and  requires  a  pupil  to  point 
to  it. 

8.  Write  words  of  the  rhyme  on  the  board  in  any  order.  Any 
pupil,  as  directed,  gives  each  word  as  written.  When  a 
pupil  does  not  recognize  a  word,  he  should  find  it  in  the 

rhyme;  if  necessary,  he  should  read  the  rhyme 

from  the  beginning  till  he  finds  the  required 

word.     Pupils  should  be  trained  to  turn  at  once  to  the 

rhyme,  instead  of   the  teacher,  when  they  cannot  recall 

a  word. 

9.  Drill  with  sight-word  cards,  [a)  Place  the  cards  contain- 
ing the  words  in  the  rhyme  on  the  crayon  shelf  under  the 
rhyme  written  low  on  the  board.    The  cards  must  be  right 

side  up  and  spread  out  so  that  each  is  visible. 

Pupils  are  required  to  choose  any  card,  hold  it 
under  the  word  in  the  rhyme  which  corresponds  to  the 
word  on  the  card,  and  pronounce  the  word.  Example : 
John  chooses  the  card  containing  the  word  play  and  holds 
it  under  the  w^ord  play  in  the  rhyme  and  says,  "  play." 
He  then  stands  before  the  class,  back  to  the  board,  hold- 
ing in  plain  view  the  card  which  he  has  "  won."    (b)  After 


THE  METHOD  APPLIED  .  79 

all  the  cards  have  been  thus  won  by  the  pupils,  each  in 
turn  taking  his  place  in  front  of  the  class  and  holding  his 
card  in  front  of  him,  the  teacher  writes  a  word  on  the 
board,  and  asks  the  children  who  have  no  cards  to  look 
along  the  line  of  cards  held  by  the  children  in  front,  and 
to  see  who  can  find  the  card  containing  the  word  written 
on  the  board.  The  child  who  finds  it  places  it  under  the 
word  written  on  the  board  by  the  teacher  and  pronounces 
it.  This  child  then  holds  the  card,  while  the  boy  who 
first  held  it  joins  the  rest  of  the  class  and  the  game  goes 
on.  This  work  must  be  rapid  or  the  best  results  are  lost 
and  much  time  wasted,  (c)  Words  should  be  read  at  sight 
from  cards  as  they  are  displayed  rapidly  by  [Page60:3; 
the  teacher,  who  holds  the  pack  of  cards  in  p  •  J 
front  of  her  and  takes  one  after  another  from  the  back 
of  the  pack  and  places  it  in  front.  As  the  teacher  does 
this  the  pupils  give  each  word,  individually  or  in  concert 
as  required. 

The  purpose  of  the  above  drills  is  to  teach  pupils  to 
recognize  words  so  quickly  that  as  soon  as  sentences 
are  placed  before  them  they  may  be  able  to  read  each 
as  a  thouglit,  not  as  a  line  of  words.  From  the  begin- 
ning, in  all  sentence  work,  the  teacher  must  be  sure  that 
the  pupil  gets  the  thought  and  that  he  expresses  it  in  his 
reading. 

10.  Write  the  following  sentences  on  the  board. 

Come. 
Come  away. 


80 


LEARNING  TO   READ 


Come,  come  away. 
Come  and  play. 
Come  away  and  play. 
Away,  away,  come  away. 

The  teacher  writes  one  sentence  at  a  time.     When  that 
^«  ,n     is  read,  the  next  sentence  is  written,  and  so  on 

[Page  68 ;1]  '  _  ' 

After  all  are  written  they  are  re-read  as  many 
times  as  desired. 

The  pupil  should  first  study  the  sentence  until  he 
knows  it,  then  read  it  aloud,  smoothly  and  expressively. 
rPa  es  5-61  ^^  ^^^^  pupil  does  not  recognize  a  word,  he  should 
turn  at  once  to  the  rhyme  and  read  from  the 
beginning  till  he  finds  his  word.  For  the  first  few  rhymes 
the  teacher  should  direct  this  search  for  the  unknown 
word,  but  gradually  the  pupil  must  learn  to  find  out  the 
word  for  himself.  As  rapidly  and  as  fully  as  possible, 
children  should  be  made  self-directive. 

11.  Seat  work.  Materials :  {a)  A  stiff  manila  card, 
4x7  inches,  ruled  off  to  contain  as  many  spaces  as 
there  are  words  in  the  rhyme.  The  spaces 
should  be  each  IJ  inches  long  by  1\  inches 
wide.  Write  the  words  of  the  rhyme  in  these  spaces, 
making  large  letters,  thus  — 


[Page  69] 


Come 

away, 

Come 

and 

play. 

THE   METHOD   APPLIED  81 

(h)  A  manila  envelope  —  it  is  convenient  to  have  it  just 
large  enough  to  hold  the  4x7  card  —  containing  a  num- 
ber of  small  cards.  These  cards  should  be  1^  inches  long 
by  1  inch  wide.  On  each  small  card  is  written  a  word 
from  the  rhyme.  There  should  be  at  least  six  duplicate 
cards  for  each  word  in  the  rhyme. 

Each  pupil  at  his  seat  should  be  provided  with  a  large 
card  and  an  envelope  of  small  cards.  The  exercise  con- 
sists in  the  pupil  j^lacing  the  small  cards  over  the  space  on 
the  large  card,  matching  the  words  on  the  small  cards 
with  the  words  in  the  spaces.  The  pupil  continues  to  do 
this  until  all  his  little  cards  are  properly  placed.  As  he 
places  each  card,  he  says  softly  to  himself  or  thinks  the 
word  which  it  contains. 

With  a  hektograph  the  teacher  can  quickly  make  a  set 
of  large  and  small  cards  sufficient  for  the  largest  division 
of  her  class  which  will  be  having  seat  work  at  the  same 
time.  The  small  cards  should  be  made  in  sheets  and 
cut  up. 

If  a  stout  manila  envelope  of  good  quality  is  used,  the 
face  of  it  may  be  ruled  off  into  spaces  and  the  words  of 
the  rhyme  written  therein;  thus  the  large  card  may  be 
dispensed  with. 

Note.  —  Sheets  containing  all  the  rhyme  words,  ready  to  cut  up,  can  be  pro- 
cured at  small  cost  from  the  publishers  of  the  Aldine  books. 


CHAPTER   IV 

THE  PRIMER,  PAGES  5-9;  THE  CHART,  PAGES  3^ 

Rhyme  II 

Run  with  me 
To  the  tree. 

with         run         me 
the  to  tree 

(Chart,  p.  3 ;  Primer,  p.  5.) 
1.  Tell  the  story,  introducing  the  rhyme. 

The  Race 

One  bright  sunny  morning  two  little  boys,  Harry  and 
George,  were  playing  together.  They  had  played 
marbles,  tops,  and  hide-and-go-seek.  Now  they 
did  not  know  what  to  play. 

'^  Let  us  play  horse,"  said  Harry. 

"  Very  well,"  answered  George.     "  You  be  my  horse." 

"  No,  you  should  be  my  horse,"  said  Harry.  ''  I  named 
the  game." 

But  George  would  not  be  the  horse. 

"  Then  I  won't  play,"  he  said.  "  I  think  the  one  who 
runs  faster  should  choose." 

"  Very  well,"  shouted  Harry, 

82 


THE   METHOD  APPLIED  83 

"  Run  with  me 
To  the  tree." 

"  Good,"  cried  George. 

The  two  boys  stood  side  by  side. 

"  One,  two,  three,"  counted  George. 

Away  the  two  boys  ran  as  fast  as  they  could,  shouting, 

"  Run  with  me, 
To  the  tree." 

Rover,  the  dog,  jumped  up  from  the  grass  and  ran  after 
the  boys,  barking  loudly.     He  seemed  to  say, 

"  Run  with  me 
To  the  tree." 

How  fast  they  all  ran  and  what  a  noise  they  made  ! 
And  who  do  you  think  got  to  the  tree  first  ? 

Not  Harry  or  George.      They  got  there  together,  but 
Rover  reached  the  tree  long  before  either  of  the  boys. 

"  Rover  must   choose    a   game,"  cried    George.     "  He 
won." 

"Yes,  Rover,  what  would  you   like  to  play?"  asked 
Harry. 

Rover  looked  at  the  boys  for  a  moment,  then  he  ran 
barking  toward  another  tree. 

What  do  you  think  he  was  trying  to  say  ? 
(  Children  ansiver) 

"  Run  with  me 
To  the  tree." 

2.   Teach  pupils  the  rhjrme  thoroughly.     See  Chapter  III,  2. 


84  LEARNING  TO   READ 

3.  Dramatize  the  rhyme.      Let    one    child   choose    another 

child,  saying, 

"  Run  with  me 
To  the  tree." 

The  two  children  then  stand  side  by  side  at  the  back  of 
the  room  while  the  children  at  their  seats  count,  "  One, 
[Paeeio-4-  ^^^^'  three!"  The  two  children  then  run  to 
p.  12 ;  8]  ^]^Q  front  of  the  room  or  to  another  child  who 
may  represent  the  tree.  The  child  who  wins  chooses 
another  child  to  run  with  him ;  or  other  two  children 
may  run. 

4.  Drill  on  the  written  rhyme.     See  Chapter  III,  4,  6,  7,  8,  9. 
In  the  simple  drill  with   the  word  cards  [See  Chapter 

III,  9  (c)],  all   the   cards  from  the  beginning  should  be 

kept  in  the  pack ;  the  cards  for  the  new  words, 

as   learned,  being  added.     As   the   pack   gets 

larger,  the  older  words  —  those  most  perfectly  known  — 

[Page  60 ;  3 ;    ^^J  ^^  removed,  thus  keeping  the  pack  of  mod- 

p.  61 ;  4]       erate  size,  fifteen   to   twenty-five  cards.      The 

cards  removed,  however,  should   be  taken  up  from  time 

to  time  for  review,  so  that  they  may  be  kept  entirely 

fresh  in  the  pupils'  minds. 

5.  Picture  study.     (Chart,  page  3 ;  Primer,  p.   8.)     Name 

the    boys    in    the    picture,    pointing    to    each. 
Which  boy  do  you  think  is  calling,  "Run  with 
me,  to  the  tree  "  ? 

6.  Read  the  following  sentences  from  the  board. 

'('Ome  away. 
[Page  68;  1]  /^ 

Oorae  with  me. 


[Page  2;  2] 


[Page  6;  4,6] 


THK  METHOD  APPLIED  85 

Come  away  with  me. 
Come  to  tlie  tree. 
Come  with  me  to  the  tree. 
^^Come  and  phay. 
Come  and  play  with  me. 

Phiy  with  me. 
Run  and  phay  with  me. 
vRun  with  me. 
Run  away  with  me. 

Run. 

Run  to  me. 
^'Run  to  the  tree. 
Run  with  me. 
Run  with  me  to  the  tree. 
Run  away  with  me. 
Run  and  play. 
Run  away. 
Run  away  and  play. 
Run  away  and  play  with  me. 
Run  to  the  tree  with  me. 

Come  to  me. 

Come  to  the  tree. 

Come  to  the  tree  with  me. 

Come  and  run  with  me. 

Come,  run  away  with  me. 

Come  and  play. 

Come  and  play  with  me. 

Come  away, 

Come  and  pla}^ ; 

Run  with  me 

To  the  tree. 


[Page41;7.8j 


86  LEARNING  TO  READ 

7.  Reading  by  doing.  As  an  aid  in  securing  intelligent 
thought  reading,  action  sentences,  entitled  "  Something  to 
Do,"  are  introduced  from  time  to  time.  These  sentences 
are  to  be  written  on  the  board,  one  at  a  time.  The  pupil 
reads  the  sentence  silently  and  does  what  the  sentence 
requires.  After  he  has  done  it  he  should  read  the  sen- 
tence aloud.  To  illustrate :  when  the  pupil  has  read  to 
himself  the  second  sentence,  he  runs  to  the  teacher ;  then 
he  reads  the  sentence  aloud. 

In  the  fourth  sentence  the  pupil  runs  to  a  picture  of  a 
tree  —  one  on  blackboard,  a  picture  brought  into  the 
room,  or  the  picture  on  the  chart.  In  the  fifth,  sixth, 
and  seventh  sentences,  he  runs  to  another  child  and  in- 
vites him  to  "  Run  with  me,"  "  Play  with  me,"  "  Run  and 
play  with  me." 

(Something  to  Do) 

1.  Run. 

2.  Run  to  me. 

3.  Run  away. 

4.  Run  to  the  tree. 
6.  Run  with  me. 

6.  Ph\y  with  me. 

7.  Run  and  play  with  me. 
'8.    Come  to  me. 

9.    Come  to  the  tree. 
10.    Run  away  and  play. 

8.  Seat  work.  Make  sets  of  cards  for  the  second  rhyme, 
[Page  69]       and  give  exercise  as  directed  in  Chapter  III,  11. 


THE  METHOD   APPLIED  87 

9.  Phonics.  Teach  tne  sounds  of  r  and  c  as  they  are 
given  in  run  and  come.  [Pages  I6-21] 

Write  run  on  the  board,  pronouncing  distinctly  r-  and 
•un  as  they  are  written;  separate  these  parts  slightly, 
thus,  run.  Let  the  pupils  pronounce,  the  rpage23-3- 
teacher  pointing  to  each  part  of  the  word  as  p-24;  5] 
the  pupils  pronounce  it.  Write  r  alone  under  the  r  in 
run ;  pupils  pronounce  r  alone.  Write  r  anywhere  on 
the   board,   pupils  pronouncing. 

Teach  c  in  co'ine  in  the  same  way.  Write  c  and  r  on 
the  board  until  the  pupils  can  give  the  sound  of  either 
instantly  and  correctly  as  soon  as  written.  Write  the 
capitals  as  well  as  the  small  letters.  C  will  give  no 
trouble  ;  if  i?  is  difficult,  analyze  Pain^  and  drill  as  with  r. 

Have  pupils  find  and  sound  these  letters,  c,  C,  r,  R,  in 
words  on  the  board. 


CHAPTER  V 

THE  PRIMER,  PAGES  10-14 ;   THE  CHART,  PAGES   5-6 

Rhyme   III 

Boys  and  girls,  come  and  play, 
Jump  and  run  —  away,  away. 

boys  girls  jump 

(Chart,  p.  5  ;  Primer,  p.  10.) 

1.  Tell  the  story,  introducing  the  rhyme. 

The  Jolly  Organ  Grinder 

One  day  a  jollj^  organ  grinder  came  marching  down  the 

street.     His  organ  was  slung  over  his  shoulder.     On  his 

[Page  2;  1;      head  was  a  bright  red   cap.     He  led  a  funny 

p-  3 ;  4]        monkey  by  a  long  string.     The  monkey  wore 

a  red  cap,  too. 

Organ  grinder  and  monkey  stopped  before  a  large 
house.  The  man  began  to  grind  his  organ  and  to  sing. 
This  is  what  he  sang, 

"  Boys  and  girls,  come  and  play, 
Jump  and  run  —  away,  away." 

The  monkey  scampered  in  at  the  doorways ;  he  climbed 
up  to  the  windows.  He  beckoned  with  his  hands,  as 
though  he  would  say, 

88 


THE  METHOD  APPLIED  89 

"  Boys  and  girls,  come  and  play, 
Jump  and  run  —  away,  away." 

Out  ran  the  boys ;  out  ran  the  girls.  How  they 
skipped !  How  they  jumped  !  They  danced  round  and 
round  the  organ  grinder  as  he  went  on  down  the  street. 
They  sang  with  him, 

"  Boys  and  girls,  come  and  play. 
Jump  and  run  —  away,  away." 

Soon  they  came  in  front  of  a  schoolhouse.  The  door 
stood  wide  open.  The  school  children  saw  the  monkey 
and  the  organ  grinder.  They  saw  the  boys  and  girls 
dancing  and  heard  them  singing, 

"  Boys  and  girls,  come  and  play, 
Jump  and  run  —  away,  away." 

How  the  school  children  longed  to  jump  from  theiT 
seats  and  rush  out !     They  could  hardly  sit  still. 

Just  then  the  teacher  tapped  her  bell  and  said,  "  Time 
for  recess !     You  may  all  run  out  and  play." 

Out  bounded  every  boy  and  girl.  How  they  jumped 
and  shouted  !     Down  the  street  they  ran,  chas- 

.  [Page  3 ;  5] 

ing  the  monkey  and  the   organ  grinder.     All 
sang, 

"  Boys  and  girls,  come  and  play. 
Jump  and  run  —  away,  away." 

2.  Teach  pupils  the  rhyme-  Every  one  must  memorize  it 
perfectly.     See  Chapter  HI,  2. 


90  LEARNING  TO  READ 

3.  Dramatize  the  rhyme.      Choose   a   leader.      The    leader 
chooses  a  number  of  children  —  the  wliole  class  if  desu*ed 

—  saying, 

"  Boys  and  girls,  come  and  play, 
Jump  and  run  —  away,  away." 

The  leader  marches  around  the  room,  the  other  children 
followino"  him.     All  do  iust  what  the  leader  does 

[Pages  8-13]  ^  '' 

—  clap  hands,  wave  hands,  hands  on  shoulders, 
hands  on  head,  hands  on  hips,  march  on  toes,  run,  skip, 
jum23,  take  chairs,  etc. 

4.  Drill  on  the  written  rhyme.       See  Chapter  III,  4,  6,  7,  8, 
9  ;  also  Chapter  IV,  4. 

Before  giving  the  sentences  following  a  new  Hnnne,  it 
,   „,      is  well  to  drill  on  croups  of  words  in  the  rhyme 

[Page  4;  2J        .  .  *^ 

itself.     For  example,  in  the  rhyme, 
"  Boys  and  girls,  come  and  play, 
Jump  and  run  —  away,  away," 

the  teacher  indicates  with  the  pointer  the  group  of  words 
which  the  children  are  to  read,  as. 

Boys  and  girls 
Jump  and  run 
girls,  come  and  play 
Come  and  jAaj. 

The  teacher  draws  the  pointer  quickly  under  these  groups 
of  words  and  the  children  read  quickly  and  smoothly. 
This  exercise  helps  pupils  to  form  the  habit  of  reading 
|-pagg4Q.  5  g.  words  together  smoothly  in  phrases,  and  coun- 
p-  41  i  7]  teracts  the  tendency  to  form  the  habit  of  read- 
ing slowly  and  jerkily,  word  by  word. 


THE   METHOD   APPLIED  91 

5.  Picture  study.  (Chart,  page  5  ;  Primer,  p.  10.)  Did 
you  ever  see  tlie  picture  of  auy  of  these  children  before  ? 
Which  ones  ?      Where  ?      How  do  you  know 

they  are  the  same  children?  What  is  the 
organ  man  singing?  Why  does  he  want  the  children  to 
follow  him  ?  What  has  the  moukey  in  his  hand  ?  What 
does  the  little  girl  think  he  is  going  to  do  with  the  cup? 
Is  she  afraid  ?  Do  you  think  the  monkey  thinks  Teddy 
Bear  is  another  monkey?  Look  at  the  organ  man's  face; 
see  how  he  is  dressed.  Is  he  an  American  ?  Where  do 
the  org;an  men  you  have  seen  come  from  ? 
See  Chapter  III,  5. 

6.  Sentences  to  be  read  from  the  board. 

Come,  boys. 

Come  and  play,  boys.  ^      „„  ,, 

^  ./*'•'  [Page  68;  1] 

Come,  gu-ls. 

Play  with  me,  girls. 

Come  and  play. 

Come  and  play  with  me. 

Come  and  play  with  me,  boys. 

Come  and  play  with  me,  girls.. 

Jump,  boys,  jump. 

Jump,  girls,  jump. 

Run,  girls,  run. 

Run,  boys,  run. 

Run,  boys  and  girls. 

Run,  girls  and  boys. 

Run  to  the  tree,  boys. 

Run  to  the  tree,  girls. 

Run  to  me,  girls. 


92  LEARNING  TO  READ 

[Page  51;  4;  R^n  tO  me,  bovs. 

p.     52;   5  „,  ..,  .   , 

p.  53;   8J  ^^^y  ^^1^1^  ^^6'  g""^S. 

Play  with  me,  boys. 

Girls,  play  with  the  boys. 

Boys,  play  with  the  girls. 

Boys  and  girls,  run  and  jump. 

Run  away,  boys. 

Run  away,  girls. 

Girls,  run  to  me. 

Boys,  run  to  the  girls. 

Girls  and  boys,  jump  with  me. 

Boj^s  and  girls,  run  to  the  tree. 

Run  and  jump,  girls  and  boys. 

The  boys  jump. 

The  girls  jump. 

The  girls  run. 

The  girls  run  to  me. 

The  boys  run  to  the  tree. 

The  boys  and  girls  run  and  jump. 

The  girls  and  boys  jump  and  play. 

7.   Reading  by  doing.      See  Chapter  IV,  7. 
Many   of   the  above  sentences  may  be  used  as  action 
sentences,  as  well  as  the  following. 

(Something  to  Do) 

Jump. 

Run,  jump,  run. 

Boys,  jump. 

Jump,  girls. 

Boys  and  girls,  run. 

Boys,  run. 


THE   METHOD   APPLIED  93 

Run  to  the  tree,  girls. 

Boys,  run  to  the  tree. 

Girls,  run  to  me. 

Run  to  me,  boys. 

Come  to  me,  girls. 

Boys,  come  to  me. 
8.   The  Reading  Chart. 

It  is  now  time  to  begin  reading  print  from  the  Reading 
Chart.  The  passage  from  script  to  print  will  be  easily 
made  by  the  children  as  they  are  already  some-  i-p^^e  57 ;  i ; 
what  familiar  with  the  printed  forms  from  the  p-59;  6] 
use  of  the  word  cards.  The  reading  from  the  chart  should 
begin  at  the  very  beginning,  with  the  first  rhyme.  As 
there  are  no  sentences  on  the  chart  which  have  not  already 
been  read  on  the  board,  the  children  will  quickly  read  u}) 
on  the  chart  even  with  their  board  work.  From  this  time 
on  reading  from  the  chart  should  accompany  the  reading 
from  the  board,  the  latter  being  used  rather  to  supplement 
the  former.  As  pupils  advance,  reading  from  the  board 
should  give  place  more  and  more  to  reading  from  the 
chart.  Reviews,  which  should  be  daily,  should  be  read 
almost  wholly  from  the  chart.  If  no  chart  is  used,  read- 
ing should  be  done  entirely  from  the  board  for  the  present. 
A  large  number  of  sentences  will  be  given  in  each  chapter 
for  that  purpose. 

It  is  considered  advisable  to  start  pupils  with  script,  but 
to  take  up  print  almost  from  the  beginning,  as  here  directed, 
and  then  to  carry  on  the  use  of  both  forms  together. 
Those    teachers,  however,  who  prefer  to  use   only  print 


94  LEARNING  TO  READ 

at  first,  will  find  the  chart  of  great  service,  saving  much 
board  work,  and  will  naturally  use  it  from  the  beginning. 

9.  Seat  work,     (a)  See  Chapter  I,  11.    On  account  of  tlie 
length  of  the  third  rhyme   the   large  cards  and  the  en- 
velopes should  be  4x9,  instead  of  4x7,  and 

[Pages  69-70]  ^  '  •  j         ^ 

the   spaces    and    the    small   cards   should    be 
shorter  than  heretofore. 

(6)  Children  arrange  small  cards  in  columns  on  the 
desk,  placing  all  like  words  in  the  same  column,  as  — 

Boys  Girls 

Boys  girls 

boys    .  girls 

10.  Phonics.    Teach  sound  of  p  in  p/a?/.    See  Chap.  IV,  9. 
Begin  drill  with  the  consonant  cards.     Only  three  can 

be  used  at  this  time,  the  j)^  c,  and  r  cards.  These  three 
[Pages  23-25;  make  the  beginning  of  a  pack,  however,  which 
60-61]  will  constantly  grow  larger  as  each  new  con- 
sonant is  learned  and  its  card  added  to  the  pack.  Daily 
drills — -they  need  be  only  brief  —  should  be  given  with 
this  growing  pack  of  consonant  cards.  There  should  also 
be  daily  practice  in  finding  and  sounding  the  consonants 
known  in  any  words  on  the  board  or  chart.  Thus  the 
children  learn  to  associate  instantly  the  proper  sound  with 
each  consonant  wherever  seen,  an  invaluable  habit  a  little 
later  when  they  are  mastering  words  phonetically. 

The  teacher  should  be  very  careful  that  every  pupil  gets 
the  correct  sound  of  each  consonant  at  the  outset.  Drill- 
ing incorrect  sounds  only  prepares  trouble  for  the  future. 


CHAPTER   VT 

THE  PRIMER,  PAGES  15  17  ;    THE  CHART,   PAGES  7-8 

Rhyme  IV 

Rain,  rain,  go  away. 

Boys  and  girls  want  to  play. 

rain  go  want 

(Chart,  p.  7  ;  Primer,  p.  15.) 
1.  Tell  the  story,  introducing-  the  rhyme. 

Tom  Tucker's  Song 

The  boys  and  girls  in  Miss  White's  class  were  going  to 
have  a  picnic  —  that  is,  if  the  next  Saturday 
should  be  clear  and  sunny. 

"For,  children,"  said  Miss  White,  "we  cannot  go  into 
the  woods  if  it  rains.  x\nd  I  hope  it  will  not  rain  on  Fri- 
day either;  for  if  it  should,  the  grass  will  be  so  wet,  it 
will  not  be  safe  to  ^o  into  the  woods  on  Saturday." 

How  the  children  did  wish  for  two  clear  days,  Friday 
and  Saturday.  At  recess  they  all  gathered  in  the  school 
yard  to  talk  it  over. 

"  If  it   is   going  to  rain  at  all  this  week,"  said  Jack 

Horner,    "  I    wish   it   would    hurry    and    rain    Tuesday, 

Wednesday,  or  Thursday,  and  use  up  all  the  water  in  the 

clouds  before  Friday." 

95 


96  LEARNING   TO   READ 

"  Rain,  rain,  go  away, 
Boys  and  girls  want  to  play," 

sang  Tom  Tucker,  a  big  boy  in  one  of  the  "upstairs 
classes,"  who  heard  what  Jack  Horner  said. 

"  Yes,  we  do  want  to  play,  don't  we,  boys  and  girls  ? " 
asked  Jack. 

"  Yes,  yes,  yes  !  "  cried  all  of  Miss  White's  children. 

"  Well,  then,"  said  Tom,  "  why  don't  you  sing  my  little 

song, 

'  Rain,  rain,  go  away. 
Boys  and  girls  want  to  play  '? 

If  you  sing  that  song  often  enough,  it  will  frighten  away 
the  rain." 

"  Will  it  really,  Tom  ?  "  asked  a  tiny  little  girl. 

"  So  I  have  been  told,"  answered  Tom.  "  I  never  tried 
it. 

"  Let  us  try  it,"  said  Simon  Simple.  "  Teach  it  to  us, 
Tom." 

"  All  right,"  said  Tom.     "  Every  one  say  it  with  me  — 

'  Rain,  rain,  go  away. 
Boys  and  girls  want  to  play.' 

Now  say  it  again  — 

'  Rain,  rain,  go  away. 
Boys  and  girls  want  to  play.'  " 

Tom  soon  taught  them  the  little  song,  and  Miss  White's 
children  gathered  together  under  the  old  apple  tree  in  the 
school  yard,  and  sang  it  over  and  over, 


THE   METHOD   APPLIED  97 

"Rain,  rain,  go  away, 
Boys  and  girls  want  to  play." 

Every  recess  time  on  Monday,  Tuesday,  Wednesday,  and 
Thursday,  the  children  in  Miss  White's  class  gathered 
under  the  apple  tree  and  sang  the  little  song 
and  not  a  drop  of  rain  fell !  They  began  to 
think  they  really  had  frightened  the  rain  away.  But  on 
Friday  morning — sometime  soon  we  shall  hear  what  hap- 
pened then.     Can  you  guess? 

2.  Teach  the  rhyme.     See  Chapter  IIT,  2. 

3.  Dramatize  the  story.     Have  a  group   of  children   (Miss 
White's  class)  gathered  in  a  corner  of  the  room.     One 
child  tells  excitedly  that  there  is  to  be  a  picnic  [Page2;  2; 
on  Saturday.     Another  qualifies  this  statement     pp*9_\i . 
by  repeating  the  substance  of  what  Miss  White     p^^^  ^J 
said   about  the  rain.      Other  children,  representing  Tom 
Tucker,  Simon  Simple,  Jack  Horner,  and  Tiny  Little  Girl, 
carry  on  the  conversation  of  the  story. 

4.  Drill  on  the  written  rhyme.  See  Chapter  IH,  4,  6,  7,  8, 
9  ;  also  Chapter  IV,  4. 

5.  A  good  rapid  word  drill.  The  teacher  places  a  list  of 
new  sight  words,  or  old  words  needing  more  drill,  on  the 
board.  She  then  covers  one  child's  eyes  with  her  hands. 
While  this  child's  eyes  are  covered,  a  second  child  points 
to  a  word  on  the  board.     For  example,  the  list  may  be  — 

Come 
away 

go 


98  LEARNING    TO   READ 

play 
boys 
girls 

Suppose  the  second  child  points  to  girls.  The  first  child's 
eyes  are  uncovered  and  he  is  given  a  pointer.  He  points 
to  the  words  and  asks,  "  Is  it  come  F"  The  other  children 
answer,  "No,  it  is  not  come.'"  "Is  it  awayf''  "No,  it 
is  not  away.''''  "  Is  it  gof  "No,  it  is  not  go.""  "Is  it 
play?  "  "No,  it  is  not  play-'  "  Is  it  girls  f  "  "  Yes," 
the  class  answers,  "  it  is  girls.'"  Another  pupil  is  blind- 
folded, another  word  is  chosen,  and  the  game  continues. 

For  variety  this  game  may  be  played  with  the  word 
cards,  (a)  Place  cards  containing  new  words  on  the 
blackboard  ledge  or  some  other  place  in  j^lain  view. 
While  one  child  has  his  eyes  covered,  have  another  child 
touch  a  card.  Then  the  child  whose  eyes  were  covered 
tries  to  name  the  correct  word  as  before.  Change  the 
order  of  cards  frequently  so  that  the  pupils  may  not 
learn  words  from  the  position  of  the  cards,  (h)  The 
teacher  handles  the  cards.  One  child  turns  his  back  to 
the  teacher.  The  teacher  then  holds  up  a  card  so  that  the 
other  children  can  see  it.  The  card  is  then  placed  with 
the  other  cards  —  hidden  away  —  and  the  child  is  directed 
to  face  the  teacher.  As  the  teacher  holds  the  cards,  one 
at  a  time,  before  this  child,  the  child  asks  the  other  chil- 
dren, "Is  it  hoy?  "  etc.  They  answer  as  in  the  first  form 
of  the  game. 

The  teacher  must  insist  on  the  pupil  naming  the  word 


THE  METHOD   APPLIED  99 

to  which  he  points  —  "Is  it  —  gbi?"  And  the  other 
pupils  must  name  the  word  in  their  answer  —  "  Yes,  it  is 
girl!'  This  repeated  association  of  the  spoken  word  with 
its  written  form  soon  results  in  binding  the  two  together 
indissohibly  in  the  child's  mind. 

6.  Picture  study.     (Chart,  page  T ;  Primer,  p.  15.)    Which 
child  do  you  think  is   Simon  Simple  ?      Jack 

...  [Pages  7-8] 

Horner  ?     The  tiny  little  girl  ?     What  are  they 
singing  ? 

See  Chapter  I  IT,  5. 

7.  Sentences  to  be  read  from  the  board. 

Rain,  gto  away. 

lioys  and  girls  want  to  play. 

Boys  want  to  jump. 

Girls  want  to  run. 

Boys  and  g^irls  want  to  run  and  iunip. 

.  .  [Pages  5-6] 

The  girls  want  to  come  with  me. 

The  boys  want  to  go  away. 

The  girls  want  to  play  with  me. 

The  boys  want  to  run  to  the  tree. 

Go  away,  boys. 

Run  away  to  the  tree. 

Come  with  me,  girls. 

Boys  want  the  rain. 

Boys  want  to  play  in  the  rain. 

The  boys  want  to  run  and  jumj)  in  the  rain. 

Run  in  the  rain,  boj^s. 
Run  away  in  the  rain. 
Run  and  jump  in  the  rain. 


100  LEARNING  TO  KEAD 

Play  with  ine,  boys. 

Run  and  play  with  me  in  the  rain. 

The  girls  want  the  rain  to  go  away. 

Rain,  rain,  go  away. 

The  girls  want  to  run  away  to  play. 

8.  Seat  work.     See  Chapter  I,  11,  and  Chapter  V,  9. 

With  the  small  cards  in  the  envelope,  pupils 
make  the  rhyme  on  their  desks,  copying  from 
the  large  card. 

9.  Phonics.    Teach  the  sounds  of  h  in  hoy  and  rj  in  girl. 

See  Chapter  IV,  9,  and  Chapter  V,  10. 

[Pages  23-25]  ^  .    ,  ^ 

For  ear  training,  pronounce  clearly  words 
beginning  with  sounds  already  taught ;  ask  pupils  to  tell 
with  what  sound  each  word  begins. 


CHAPTER  VII 

THE  PRIMER,  PAGES  18-23  ;  THE  CHART,  PAGES  9-10 

Rhyme  V 

Rain,  rain,  go  away, 

Come  again  some  other  day. 

day  again  other  some 

(Chart,  p.  9;  Primer,  p.  18.) 
1.   Tell  the  story,  introducing  the  rhyme. 

How  Jack  Horxer  sang  the  Rain  Away 

You  remember  the  story  about  the  children  in  Miss 
White's  class  who  were  going  on  a  picnic,  do  j^ou  not  ? 
You  remember  the  little  rhyme  they  sansi:  on 

[Paces  2-41 

Monday,  Tuesday,  Wednesday,  and  Thursday  ? 
And  not  a  drop  of  rain  fell  on  those  days.  But  on  Friday 
morning.  Jack  Horner  jumped  out  of  bed  and  ran  to  the 
window,  and  —  oh,  dear  !  how  can  I  tell  you  !  —  The  rain 
had  come  at  last;  not  in  a  few  little  drops  that  pattered 
against  the  window  panes,  but  in  torrents.     It  just  poured  ! 

"Oh,  dear!  Oh,  dear  !"  cried  Jack.  "Whatever  shall 
we  do !  The  woods  will  be  wet  and  we  can't  have  our 
picnic !     Oh,  dear,  dear,  dear !" 

"Don't  cry,"  said  Mother,  "perhaps  it  will  be  all  over 
by  noontime.     I  think  it  will.     Just  be  happy  and  sing, 

101 


102  LEARNING   TO   READ 

'  Rain,  rain,  go  away, 
Come  again  some  other  day.'  " 

"Oh,  Mother,  don't  sing  that,"  said  Jack.  "If  you  do, 
the  rain  might  go  away  now  and  come  back  to-morrow, 
and  that  would  be  worse." 

At  nine  o'clock  it  still  rained  so  hard  that  Jack  could 
not  go  to  school,  for  he  was  a  very  little  boy  and  the 
school  was  a  long  way  from  his  home. 

Poor  little  Jack  !  He  could  hardly  keep  the  tears  from 
rolling  down  his  cheeks  just  as  the  raindrops  rolled  down 
the  window  pane. 

"It's  bad  enough  to  have  it  rain  and  spoil  the  picnic,"  he 
cried,  "  but  it  is  worse  to  have  it  rain  to-day  and  keep  me 
home  from  school,  too." 

He  stood  at  the  window,  looking  out  at  the  rain,  and 
before  he  knew  it,  lie  found  himself  singing  softly, 

"Rain,  rain,  go  away, 
Come  again  some  other  day." 

As  Jack  watched,  the  sky  seemed  brighter.  And  he 
sang  louder  and  more  cheerfully  — 

"Rain,  rain,  go  away. 
Come  again  some  other  day." 

Over  and  over  again  he  sang  it  — 

"Rain,  rain,  go  away, 
Come  again  some  other  day." 

Soon  the  sun  really  began  to  shine  through  the  rain. 


THE  METHOD  APPLIED  103 

The  rain  stopped  and  a  beautiful  rainbow  shone  in   the 
sky. 

Jack  clapped  his  hands.  "  Oh,  Mother !  "  he  cried,  "just 
look  at  that  rainbow !  It  chased  away  the  rain  just  as 
though  it  sang, 

'  Rain,  rain,  go  away, 
Come  again  some  other  day.'  " 

"  Yes,"  answered  Mother.  "  The  rain  is  over.  You 
may  go  to  school  this  afternoon.  This  bright,  warm  sun 
will  soon  dry  the  grass,  and  I  think  3'ou  will  be  able  to 
have  your  picnic  to-morrow." 

2.  Teach  the  rhyme.     See  Chapter  III,  2. 

3.  Dramatize  the  story.  Choose  a  boy  for  little  Jack 
Horner.  He  may  look  out  of  the  window  and  tell  how 
grieved  he  is  because  it  rains.      Another  child 

may  be  the  mother,  and  cheer  Jack  up  by  teach- 
ing him  the  rhyme.  Jack  repeats  the  rhyme,  looking  out 
of  the  window.  Soon  he  turns  from  the  window  and  says, 
"  The  sky  is  getting  brighter.  Oh,  see  that  rainbow, 
Mother.  The  rain  is  over.  May  I  go  to  school  this  after- 
noon ?  "     The  mother  answers  as  in  the  story. 

In  dramatizing,  pupils  should  not  be  required  or  even 
encouraged  to  use  the  words  of  the  story.  Original,  fluent 
expression  that  conveys  the  thought  should  be  cultivated. 

4.  DriU  on  the  written  rhyme.      See  Chapter  III,  t^*&««  l^l6: 

^  ^  p.  60:  1,3; 

4,  6,  7,  8,  9  ;  Chapter  IV,  4,  and  Chapter  VI,  5.     p.  61 :  4] 

5.  Picture  study.  Chart,  page  9  ;  Primer,  p.  18).  What 
is  the  little  boy's  name  ?     What  time  of  day  is  it  ?     How 


104 


LEARNING  TO   READ 


do  you  know  ?     (Child  in  night  clothes.)     Why  did  Jack 
Horner  get  up  so  early  and  run  to  the  window  ?     Why  is 
he  crying  ?     What  song  should  he  sing  ? 
See  Chapter  III,  5. 

6.   Sentences  to  be  read  from  the  board. 

Rain,  go  away. 

Go  away,  rain. 
[Page  93]  Go  away  to-day. 

Some  girls  want  to  play. 

Some  girls  want  to  play  to-day.. 
[Pages  5-6]         Other  girls  want  to  run. 

Rain,  go  away. 
[Pages  40-41]      Come  again,  rain. 

Come  some  other  day. 

Some  boys  want  to  jump. 
[Pages  49-52]      Some  boys  want  to  play. 

Some  boys  want  to  play  to-day. 

Come  some  other  day,  rain. 
Some  boys  want  the  rain. 
Some  boys  play  in  the  rain. 

Some  boj's  jump. 

Other  boys  run. 

Some  boys  jump  again  and  again. 

Some  boys  run  to  me. 
Some  boys  run  to  the  tree. 
Other  boys  run  away. 

Run  to  me  again,  boys. 
Run  again  to  the  tree. 


THE  METHOD  APPLIED  lUo 

Run  to  some  other  tree. 

Some  girls  want  the  rain. 

Other  girls  want  the  rain  to  go  away. 

Some  girls  want  to  jump. 

Other  girls  want  to  run  and  play. 

Some  girls  want  to  play  in  the  rain. 
Other  girls  want  the  boys  to  play. 

Some  girls  want  to  play  with  the  boys. 
Some  boys  want  to  play  with  the  girls. 

Go  away,  rain. 
Go  away  to-day. 

Come  again,  rain. 

Come  again  some  other  day. 

7.  Reading  by  doing.     See  Chapter  IV",  7. 

(Something  to  Do) 

Come  to  me,  boys. 

Run  away. 

Come  again,  boys. 

Run  away  again. 

Some  other  boys  come. 

Go  away  again. 

Come  to  me,  girls. 

Go  away,  girls. 

Boys  and  girls,  come  to  me. 

Run  away,  boys. 

Girls,  run  away. 


lOG  LEARNING  TO   READ 

8.  The  Primer.    Those   teachers  who  are  not  using   the 

Reading  Chart  may  profitably  begin  the  use  of  the  Primer 

„   ,     at  about  this  point.     The  transition  from  the 

[Page  57 ;  1 ;  ^  . 

p.  58:4;      board  to  the  book  will  not  be  difficult,  as  the 
^      '  pupils  are  already  familiar,  through  the  use  of 

the  sight-word  cards,  with  the  printed  forms  of  the  words. 
They  should  begin  to  read  the  book  from  the  beginning. 
They  will,  thus,  quickly  review  all  that  they  have  read 
from  the  board.  From  now  on,  reading  from  the  board 
will  rapidly  give  w^ay  to  reading  from  the  book. 

9.  Seat  work.    See  Chapter  I,   11 ;    Chapter 
[Pag,,  69-70]    Y^  g^   .^j  Chapter  VI,  8. 

Very  soon  after  pupils  begin  to  read  in  class  from  the 
Primer  they  should  begin  to  have  study  periods  for  read- 
ing at  their  seats  certain  stories  or  assigned  groups  of 
sentences  in  the  book.  They  should  be  taught  to  refer 
to  the  rhymes  which  they  have  memorized  to  find  words 
which  they  do  not  recognize  in  the  text. 
*^°  '  The  sentences  thus  read  at  the  seats  w^ill,  ef 
course,  be  read  aloud  in  class. 

10.  Phonics.  Teach  the  sound  of  d  in  day.  See  Chapter 
IV,  9,  and  Chapter  V,  10. 

Require  pupils  to  give  words  beginning  with  sounds 
already  studied.  The  words  given  may  or  may  not  be 
words  studied  by  the  pupils  in  class.  For  example,  should 
the  teacher  call  for  words  beginning  with  the  sound  of  ^9, 
the  pupils  may  give,  indeed  often  do  give,  such  words  as 
pla?j,  2^ie,  pijie,  ^^?w>i^^A;m,  Peter,  j^^dl,  2Jut,  paper,  pencil. 


THE   METHOD   APPLIED  107 

jncnic.  In  giving  the  words,  pupils  slightly  exaggerate 
the  sound  of  the  first  letter. 

Interest  is  often  aroused  by  letting  these  sound  drills 
take  the  form  of  games,  as  follows  :  A  pupil  passes  around 
the  room  touching  any  number  of  objects.  Instead  of 
naming  them  he  gives  the  sound  with  which  the  name 
begins;  as,  touching  the  board,  he  gives  the  sound  of  h, 
touching  the  "desk,  he  gives  the  sound  of  d.  As  soon  as 
the  pupil  makes  a  mistake  he  takes  his  seat  and  the  child 
who  gives  the  correct  sound  takes  the  first  pupil's  place. 
For  concert  work  the  teacher  may  point  to  the  objects  and 
pupils  give  the  sounds. 

Similar  drills  may  be  given  with  lists  of  words  on  the 
board  or  with  the  words  on  a  page  of  the  reading  chart. 
But  in  the  drill  with  written  or  printed  words  the  child 
should  give  not  only  the  first  sound,  but  also  the  word  as 
a  whole.  For  example,  with  the  words  girl  and  come:  the 
child  should  first  point  to  the  letter  rj,  sound  it,  and  then 
pronounce  the  word  rjifi ;  point  to  c,  sound  it,  and  then 
pronounce  the  word  come.  Of  course  all  this  work  should 
include  only  Avords  studied  by  the  children. 


CHAPTER  VIII 

THE  PRIMER,  PAGES  24-30;  THE  CHART,  PAGES  11-13 

Rhyme  VI 

Sing,  little  girl, 
Sing,  little  boy. 
The  rain  is  over, 
Sing  for  joy. 

sing         is         over        little         joy         for 

(Chart,  p.  11  ;  Primer,  p.  24.) 

1.  Tell  the  story,  introducing  the  rhyme. 

Miss  White's  Picnic 

Would  you  like  to  hear  about  Miss  White's  picnic  ? 

On  Saturday  morning  the  sun  was  shining  as  though  it 
had  never  hidden  behind  the  big,  dark  rain  clouds.  At 
nine  o'clock  the  children  gathered  at  the  school- 
house.  Each  child  carried  a  box  or  a  basket  of 
lunch.  I  wish  I  had  time  to  tell  you  all  the  good  things 
these  boxes  and  baskets  held. 

Jack  Horner  said  he  had  a  Christmas  pie  for  his  lunch. 

Simon  Simple  said,  "  I  have  for  my  lunch  the  whale 
that  I  caught  in  my  mother's  pail." 

The  children  all  laughed  and  each  tried  to  think  of 
something  funny  to  say  he  had  for  lunch. 

108 


THE   METHOD   APPLIED  109 

But  now  a  big  wagon  drove  up  to  the  door,  and  the 
children  rushed  out  and  climbed  into  it  and  away  they 
drove. 

"  Let  us  sing  something,"  said  one  little  boy. 

"  Shall  we  sing,  '  Rain,  rain,  go  away  ? '  "  asked  Simon 
Simple. 

"No,"  said  Miss  White,  "let  us  sing  this  — 

"Sing,  little  girl, 
Sing,  little  boy, 
The  rain  is  over. 
Sing  for  joy." 

"  Good,  good  !  "  shouted  the  children.  So  they  quickly 
learned  the  little  rhyme  and  sang  merrily  all  the  way  — 

"Sing,  little  girl, 
Sing,  little  boy. 
The  rain  is  over. 
Sing  for  joy." 

Soon  they  reached  the  grove  where  the  picnic  was  to  be 
held. 

Swings  had  been  put  up  under  the  trees.  The  children 
rushed  to  them.  Up,  up,  up  they  flew  almost  to  the 
branches!     As  they  swung  they  sang  their  new  song, 

"  Sing,  little  girl, 
Sing,  little  boy. 
The  rain  is  over. 
Sing  for  joy." 

All  day  long  they  played  games,  ran  races,  and  ate 
lunches.*     At  last  tired,  but  very  happ}^,  they  sat  down 


110  LEARNING    TO   READ 

under  the  trees  to  rest.     But  not  one  was  too  tired  to  join 
in  singing  the  new  song  — 

"  Sing,  httle  girl, 
Sing,  httle  boy, 
The  rain  is  over, 
Sing  for  joy." 

2.  Teach  the  rhyme.  See  Chapter  III,  2.  The  teacher 
may  play  that  she  is  Miss  White  ;  her  pupils  may  be 
Miss  White's  children  sitting  in  the  wagon  on  the  way 
to  the  picnic. 

3.  Drill  on  the  written  rhyme.  See  Chapter  III,  4,  6,  7,  8,  9  ; 
Chapter  IV,  4,  and  Chapter  VI,  5. 

All  rhymes  should  be  kept  on  the  blackboard,  or  on 
separate  charts,  low  enough  for  pupils  to  reach  them. 
These  rhymes  are  to  be  used  by  the  pupil  as  an 
aid  in  finding  for  himself,  at  any  time,  any  word 
he  may  have  forgotten.  For  example,  a  child  is  reading 
from  board  or  chart.  He  comes  to  the  word  vnth,  which 
he  does  not  recognize.  Instead  of  telling  him  the  word,  the 
teacher  says,  "  Find  it  in  Rhyme  II."  The  teacher  then 
goes  on  with  her  recitation,  leaving  the  child  to  find  the 
word  for  himself.  He  walks  over  to  Rhyme  II  and  reads 
until  he  finds  the  word  icith.  Then  he  joins  the  class  and 
reads  the  sentence.  Too  much  emphasis  cannot  be  put 
upon  the  importance  of  training  the  pupil  to  work  thus 
independently. 

The  following  device  for  reviewing  words  is  worth 
using  occasionally.     Give  each  child  a  card  (one  of  the 


THE  METHOD   APPLIED  111 

large  word  cards)  containing  a  word  already  tauglif. 
Each  child  runs  to  the  "  reference  rhymes "  with  hi.? 
card  and  places  it  under  the  same  word  in  a  rhyme.  Thu 
teacher  passes  quickly  from  child  to  child,  collecting  tb« 
cards  as  the  words  are  pronounced  correctly.  If  a  child 
cannot  read  his  word,  he  is  directed  to  repeat  the  rhyme 
till  he  comes  to  the  right  word. 

4.  Picture  study.  (Chart,  page  11.)  For  what  are  the 
children  waiting  ?  Which  child  do  you  think  will  see  the 
wagon  first  ?     Show  me  Jack  Horner.     The 

tiny  little  girl.  Simon  Simple.  What  have 
the  children  in  the  boxes,  pails,  and  baskets  ?  What  did 
Jack  Horner  bring  for  his  lunch  ?  What  did  Simon  Simple 
bring?  Do  you  think  Miss  White  and  the  other  children 
will  come  in  the  wagon  ?  Do  the  children  look  glad  be- 
cause the  rain  is  over  ?     What  song  will  they  sing  ? 

5.  Reading  from  the  board. 

Sincf,  little  ffirls. 

bing,  little  boys. 

The  little  girls  sing, 

"  Rain,  rain,  go  away. 

Come  again  some  other  day.'* 

The  little  boys  sing, 
"  The  rain  is  over. 
Sing  for  joy." 
Sing  again,  little  girls, 
Sing  again,  little  boys. 
Sing,  for  the  rain  is  over 
Sing  to-day  for  joy. 


112  LEARNING  TO   READ 

[Page  13-15] 


Come,  sing  with  me. 

Sing  with  me,  girls  and  boys. 

Sing  with  me  for  joy. 


The  rain  is  over. 
The  rain  is  over  for  to-day. 
Sing,  little  girl. 
Little  boy,  sing. 
I'P^S^^J^^-^'^  •  Sing,  boys  and  girls,  sing  for  joy. 
p.  45;  15]     Run,  little  boys,  run  and  jump. 
Sing,  little  girls,  sing  and  play. 
The  rain  is  over. 
Boys  and  girls  play  to-day. 

Sing  and  play,  little  girls. 

Play  and  sing,  little  boys. 

Sing  again  for  joy,  little  girls. 

Run  and  jump  again  for  joy,  little  boys. 


iPage  54 ;  9] 


Come  again,  rain. 
Come  some  other  day. 
To-day  is  for  play.  , 

To-day  is  for  joy. 

Sing,  girls,  sing  for  joy. 

Sing,  boys,  sing  with  the  girls. 

Sing,  boys,  for  the  rain  is  over. 

Sing,  boys  and  girls,  sing  again  and  again. 

6.  Drill  on  the  regular  singular  and  plural  forms  of  nouns  and 
verbs.  After  this  exercise  use  either  form  without  any 
formal  drill. 


THE  METHOD   APPLIED 


113 


girl 

girls 

jump 

jumps 

boy 

boys 

rain 

rains 

tree 

trees 

want 

wants 

play 

plays 

come 

comes 

run 

runs 

sing 

sings 

The  little  girl  sings  and  plays. 

The  little  girls  sing  and  play. 

The  little  boy  jumps  and  runs. 

The  little  boys  jump  and  run. 

The  rain  comes. 

The  girl  runs  over  to  the  trees. 

The  boy  plays  in  the  rain. 

The  girl  wants  the  rain  to  go  away. 

The  boys  want  the  rain  to-day. 

7.  Seat  work.      See   Chapter  I,    11,    Chapter  V,  9,  and 
Chapter  VI,  8.     With  small  cards  pupils  recon- 
struct the  rhyme  on  their  desks  following  the 
printed  copy  on  the  chart. 

8.  Phonics.     Teach  the  sound  of  s  in  sing  and  of  /  in  joy. 
See  Chapter  IV,  9,  Chapter  V,  10,  and  Chapter  VII,  10. 


[Pages  69-70] 


CHAPTER   IX 

THE  PRIMER,  PAGES  33-39 ;  THE  CHART,  PAGES  14-15 

Rhyme  VII 

Little  Bluebird  in  the  tree, 
Sing  a  song  to  me. 

blue         bird         a         song         in 

(Chart,  p.  14;  Primer,  p.  33. ) 

1.  Tell  the  story,  introducing  the  rhyme. 

The  Bluebird 

Miss  White's  children,  who  went  on  the  picnic,  were  so 
happy  they  sang  all  the  songs  they  knew. 
These  are  the    songs   they    sang.     Let  us  say 


them  together. 


Come  away, 
Come  and  play. 

Run  with  me 
To  the  tree. 

Boys  and  girls,  come  and  play, 
Jump  and  run  —  away,  away. 

Rain,  rain,  go  away. 
Boys  and  girls  want  to  play. 
114 


THE  METHOD  APPLIED  115 

Rain,  rain,  go  away, 

Come  again  some  other  day. 

Sing,  little  girl, 
Sing,  little  boy, 
The  rain  is  over. 
Sing  for  joy. 

When  they  had  sung  all  their  songs  over  and  over, 
little  Jack  Horner  cried  out,  "  See  that  little  bluebird  in 
the  tree  !     Why  doesn't  he  sing  ?  " 

"  Perhaps  he  is  only  waiting  to  be  asked,"  answered 
Simon  Simple. 

"Let  us  ask  him,"  said  Miss  White.  And  she  called 
to  the  little  bird, 

"  Little  Bluebird  in  the  tree, 
Sing  a  song  to  me." 

The  little  bird  sat  still  and  made  no  sound.  Miss 
White  called  again, 

"  Little  Bluebird  in  the  tree, 
Sing  a  song  to  me." 

Still  the  little  bird  was  silent. 

"  Perha^DS  if  we  all  ask  him  together,  he  will  sing  to  us," 
said  Simon  Simple. 

"Perhaps  he  will,"  said  Miss  White.  "Let  us  try  it. 
All  say  with  me, 

'  Little  Bluebird  in  the  tree, 
Sino-  a  sonor  to  me.'" 

Miss  White  and  the  children  said  over  and  over, 


116  LEARNING  TO  READ 

"  Little  Bluebird  in  the  tree, 
Sing  a  song  to  me." 

But  little  Bluebird  did  nothing  more  than  hop  about 
from  branch  to  branch  and  look  at  them. 

2.  Teach  the  rhyme.     See  Chapter  III,  2. 

3.  Dramatize  the  story.  Children  represent  Bluebird,  Jack 
Horner,  Simon  Simple,  and  Miss  White.  Follow  the  main 
[Page  9 ;  2 ;     eveuts  of  the  storj,  somewhat  as  follows : 

pp.  10-11]  (Child  on  chair  for  Bluebird.) 

Jack  Horner.  —  See  that  dear  little  bluebird!  Why  does  he 
not  sing  ? 

Simon  Simple.  —  Maybe  because  no  one  has  asked  him. 
Miss  White.  —  I  will  ask  him. 

Little  Bluebird  in  the  tree, 
Singf  a  souCT  to  me. 

(Bluebird  hops  about,  but  does  not  sing.) 

Miss  White.  —  I  will  ask  him  again.     (Repeats  the  rhyme.) 
Simon  Simple.  —  Perhaps  if  we  all  ask  together,  he  will  sing 
to  us. 

Miss  White.  —  Perhaps  he  will.     Let  us  try  it. 

All.  —  (Repeat  rhyme.) 

Jack  Horner.  —  Let  us  trj'  once  more. 

^ZZ.  — (Rhyme.) 

(Bluebird  flies  away;  that  is,  the  child  flies  to  his  seat.) 
Simon  Simple.  —  There,  he  lias  flown  away. 

4.  Drill  on  the  written  rhyme.  See  Chapter  III,  4,  6,  7,  8, 
9  ;  Chapter  IV,  4  ;   Chapter  VI,  5,  and  Chapter  VIII,  3. 

5.  Picture  study.      (Chart,  page  14;  Primer,  p.  33.)     At 


[Page  2 ;  2] 


[Page  61 ;  3] 


THE   METHOD   APPLIED  117 

what  is  Jack  Horner  pointing  ?     What  does  he  want  Blue- 
bird to  do  ?     What  song  did  Miss  White  teach  the  children 
to  sing  to  Bluebird  ? 
See  Chapter  III,  5. 
6.   Reading  from  the  board. 

ISing,  little  Bluehird. 
Sing  a  song  to  me. 
Sing  a  song  to  the  boys. 
Sing  a  song  to  the  girls. 

Little  girls,  sing  a  song. 

Sing,  "The  rain  is  over." 

Sing  to  the  little  bird. 

Sing  with  the  little  boy. 

Sing  to  Bluebird.  [Page  41;  7] 

Sing  again  for  joy. 

A  little  bird  is  in  the  tree. 
The  bird  is  a  bluebird. 
The  bluebird  sings  a  song. 
Little  Bluebird  sings  to  me. 
Bluebird  sings  to  a  little  girl. 
Bluebird  sings  to  a  little  boy. 
The  rain  is  over. 
Bluebird  sings  for  joy. 

Sing  to  me,  little  Bluebird. 
Sing  a  song  to  me. 
Sing  some  other  songs. 
Sing  again,  little  Bluebird. 
Sing  other  songs  to  me. 
Sing  in  the  tree. 
Sing  for  joy. 


118  LEARNING   TO   READ 

Sing  to  the  little  girl. 

Sing  to  the  little  boy. 

Sing,  little  bird,  sing  for  joy. 
Who      I 
Boy.  —  AVho  wants  to  jump  ? 
Qirl. —  I  want  to  jump. 
Girl.  —  Who  wants  to  run  ? 
Boy.  —  I  want  to  run. 
Boy.  —  Who  wants  the  rain  ? 
Grirl.  —  The  little  boys  want  the  rain. 
Grirl.  —  Who  wants  the  rain  to  go  away  ? 
Boy.  —  Little  girls  want  the  rain  to  go  away. 
Boy.  —  Who  sings  for  joy  ? 
Girl.  —  I  sing  for  joy,  little  boy. 

7.  Silent  reading.  Pupils  read  each  of  the  following  sen- 
tences silently,  then  answer  aloud.  Thus,  to  the  first 
question,  Who  wants  to  run  with  me?  the  pupil  may 
answer — A  little  boy  wants  to  run  with  me.  The  second 
question.  Who  wants  to  jump  ?  may  be  answered,  I  want 
to  jump,  or,  A  little  girl  wants  to  jump. 

Sometimes  the  teacher  allows  the  child  to  run  to  her 
and  whisper  the  answers,  to  the  questions.  Then  she 
writes  them  on  the  board,  each  answer  under  the  ques- 
tion to  which  it  belono-s.  When  this  w^ritten  exercise  is 
finished,  the  questions  and  answers  make  a  good  dialogue 
that  may  be  read  by  two  children,  one  reading  the  ques- 
tions, the  other  the  answers. 

(Silent  Reading) 
Who  wants  to  run  with  me  ? 


THE  METHOD  APPLIED  119 

Who  wants  to  jump  ? 

Who  wants  the  rain  to  come  ? 

Who  wants  to  play  in  the  rain  ? 

Who  wants  to  sing  ? 

Who  wants  to  sing  a  song  to  me  ? 

Who  sings  in  the  tree  ? 

Who  sings  a  song  to  me  ? 

Who  sings,  "  The  rain  is  over  "  ? 

Who  wants  to  run  away  with  me  ? 

Who  wants  to  run  to  the  tree  ? 

Who  wants  to  run  again  ? 

Who  jumps  and  runs  away  ? 

8.  The  Primer.  Those  teachers  who  are  using  both  the 
Reading  Chart  and  the  Primer  should  have  the  pupils 
begin  read  in  cr   from    the   latter  at  about   this   ,„      ^r,   ». 

»  f  [Page  57:  2] 

point.     It  will  be  w^ell   to  let  them  read  the 

book  from  the  beginning,  thus  reviewing  at  first  the  work 

they  have  had  from  the  chart  and  the  board. 

9.  Seat  work.  See  Chapter  I,  11;  Chapter  V,  9;  Chapter 
VI,  8,  and  Chapter  VIII,  7. 

As  soon  as  books  are  placed  in  pupils'  hands,  they  should 
begin  to  read  from  them  to  themselves,  at  their  seats. 
This  is  one  of  the  most  profitable  kinds  of  busy  w^ork.  In 
reading  for  themselves  they  are  getting  the  best  kind  of 
training  in  independent  work,  in  applying  what  they  have 
already  learned.  If,  at  first,  they  are  given  something  to 
read  from  the  Primer  which  they  have  already  read  from 
the  chart  and  board,  the  demand  on  their  powers  will  not 
be  too  great.     As  they  become  accustomed  to  the  use  of 


120  LEARNING  TO   READ 

the  book,  they  will  be  able  to  undertake  advance  work 
successfully.  Reference  to  the  rhymes  whicli  they  have 
memorized  —  a  habit  which  the  pupils  should  have  well 
established  by  this  time  —  will  enable  them  really  to  read 
the  stories  which  contain  only  such  words  as  have  already 
been  used  in  rhymes.  The  pupils'  growing  knowledge  of 
phonics  will  enable  them  gradually  — -  if  properly  .applied 
—  to  read  far  beyond  the  power  afforded  by  their  vocabu- 
lary of  "  rhyme  "  words. 

The  child  experiences  a  peculiar  and  keen  delight  in 
his  power  to  read  indef)endently.  Once  let  him  become 
conscious  of  that  power,  and  his  problem  of  learning  how 
to  read  is  essentially  solved.  Give  him  the  opportunity 
and  he  will  learn  to  read  by  reading.  All  the  help  that 
the  teacher  can  afford  will  be  doubly  helpful  because  the 
child  knows  how  to  use  the  assistance  given. 

Because  the  beginning  of  independent  reading  at  the 
earliest  possible  moment  is  of  such  importance,  not  only 
as  an  accomplishment  in  itself,  but  especially  as  the  most 
effective  means  of  sure  and  rapid  advancement  in  the  art, 
it  should  be  given  every  care  and  encouragement.  What 
a  child  has  read  to  himself,  he  should  read  afterward  in 
class,  or,  often  better,  to  the  teacher  alone.  Let  the  teacher 
encourage  that  feeling  of  wholesome  pride  which  the  child 
naturally  experiences  when  he  has  done  something  all  by 
himself. 

10.  Phonics.  Teach  the  sound  of  I  in  little  and  of  m  in 
me.     See  Chapter  IV,  9;  Chapter  V,  10,  and 

[Pages  23-25]    ^^^^^^^    ^^^^^  ^  _ 


CHAPTER   X 

THE  PRIMER.  PAGES  40  46 ;  THE  CHART,  PAGES  16-n 

Rhyme  VIII 

Sing,  little  Bluebird, 
Tell  of  the  spring ; 
Sing,  little  Bluebird, 
The  glad  news  bring. 

tell  of  spring 

glad  news  bring 

(Chart,  p.  16  ;  Primer,  p.  40.) 
1.  Tell  the  story,  introducing  the  rhyme. 

The  Bluebird's  Song 

"Miss  White,"  said  Simon  Simple,  *' Miss 
White,  I  think  I  know  wh}'  Bluebird  does  not 
sing  to  us." 

''  Why  is  it,  Simon  ? "  asked  Miss  White. 

"  Because  he  doesn't  know  what  to  sing ;  he  doesn't 
know  what  to  sa\%"  answered  Simon  Simple. 

"  Of  course  the  bluebird  knows  what  to  siuor.  All  birds 
have  songs  that  they  know,"  cried  Jack  Horner. 

"  But  we  didn't  know  what  to  sing  until  Miss  White 
taught  us,"  said  Simon  Simple.     "  Miss  White  taught  us 

121 


122  .     LEARNING  TO   READ 

every  song  we   know.     Do   you   think   a;  little   bluebird 
knows  more  than  boys  and  girls?" 

"  Maybe  Simon  is  right,"  said  Miss  White.  "  Anyway, 
it  will  do  no  harm  to  try  to  teach  the  little  bird.  Come, 
Bluebird,  come.     We'll  tell  you  what  to  sing  about." 

Little  Blueljird  seemed  to  be  not  one  bit  afraid,  for  he 
flew  right  down  among  the  children  and  lighted  on  a 
stump. 

"Come,  children,"  said  Miss  White,  "let's  tell  Bluebkd 
what  to  sing. 

'  Sing,  little  Bluebird, 
Tell  of  the  spring ; 
Sing,  little  Bluebird, 
The  glad  news  bring.' 

Now  all  sing  it  with  me." 

All  the  children  joined  hands  and  made  a  big  circle 
«bout  Bluebird,  and  they  sang  over  and  over, 

"  Sing,  little  Bluebird, 
Tell  of  the  Spring ; 
Sing,  little  Bluebird, 
The  glad  news  bring." 

At  last  little  Bluebird  sang,  oh,  so  sweetly.  He  sang 
about  the  spring ;  he  sang  about  the  birds  and  flowers. 
It  was  such  g;lad  news. 

2.   Teach  the  rhyme.     See  Chapter  III,  2. 

Be  sure  pupils  get  the  thought  in  this  rhyme,  or  it  will 
be  hard  for   them  to   learn   the  words.     Ask 

fPage4;  2]  I  . 

such  questions'  as,  What  does  Bluebird  tell  of 


THE   METHOD  APPLIED  123 

the  spring  ?     What  news  does  Bluebird  bring  ?     Why  do 
we  call  it  glad  news  ? 

3.  Dramatize  the  story,  following  main  events 
as  in  the  last  dramatization  (Chapter  IX,  3). 

4.  Drill  on  the  written  rhyme.  See  Chapter  III,  4,  6,  7,  8, 
9;  Chapter  IV,  4;  Chapter '  VI,  5,  and  Chap-  [Page  go  ;i 

ter  VIII,  3.  3;p   61;4] 

5.  Another  word  drill.  Place  a  card  containing;  a  word 
on  each  child's  desk,  the  word  side  turned  down.  The 
teacher  directs,  '•  Turn  cards,"  following  this  order  imme-, 
diately  with  —  "Bring  me  2)lay,  go,  come,  other,  tell,  etc." 
The  child  having  the  card  containing  the  word  called  by 
the  teacher  runs  with  it  to  her.  The  game  is 
continued  until  all  the  cards  are  collected.     If 

a  child  does  not  know  his  word,  he  goes  at  once  to  the 
reference  rhyme  containing  it  and  finds  it  for  himself. 

6.  Picture  study.  (Chart,  page  16  ;  Primer,  p.  40.)  What 
did  the  children  sing  to  Bluebird  ?  Is  Bluebird  singing 
to  the  children?  Why  does  Simon  Simple  hold  up  hir 
finger?  Are  the  other  children  listening  to  Bluebird's 
song  ?  What  glad  news  does  Bluebird  sing  to  the  chil- 
dren ? 

See  Chapter  III,  5. 

7.  Reading  from  the  board. 

Tell  me  glad  news. 

Tell  me  of  the  siirincr. 

,p  n  ,,  .     ,  ''  [Page  93:  8] 

leli  the  ram  to  go  away. 

Tell  Bluebird  to  come  again. 


124  LEARNING   TO   READ 

I  want  glad  news. 
[Pagel06;8]    ^   ■  ^  c  ..  • 

Bring  news  oi  the  spring. 

Tell  me  again,  "  Spring  is  come." 

Tell  me  Bluebird  is  come  again. 

Spring  brings  the  bluebirds. 
Bluebirds  want  spring  to  come. 
Go  away,  rain. 
Come,  glad  spring. 

Sing,  Bluebird,  sing  the  glad  news. 
Spring  is  come,  sing  for  joy. 

Little  Bluebird  is  glad. 
Bluebird  brings  glad  news. 
Little  Bluebird  sings. 
Bluebird  sings  a  song  of  joy. 
The  song  tells  me  spring  is  come. 

A  song  of  spring  is  glad  news. 

A  song  of  spring  is  a  song  of  joy. 

Sing,  little  Bluebird,  sing  to  me. 

Tell  me  of  the  spring. 

Bring  me  glad  news. 

Bring  me  glad  news  of  the  spring. 

Tell  me,  "  Spring  is  come." 

The  little  girl  is  glad. 

The  rain  is  over. 

The  little  girl  sings,  "  Spring  is  come." 

8.  Dialogue.  The  following  sentences  are  to  be  read  as 
a  dialogue  by  two  children.  Or  all  the  chil- 
dren may  take  sides  facing  each  other  in  two 


[Pages  40-41] 
[Pages  43-45] 


THE   METHOD   APPLIED  125 

lines.     The  children  on  one  side  may  ask  the  questions  in 
order  and  the  children  on  the  other  side  answer  in  tiurn. 

What  ? 

Who  sings  in  the  tree  ? 

Little  Bluebird  sings  in  the  tree. 

What  is  the  song  Bluebird  sings  ? 
Bluebird  sings,  ''  Spring  is  come." 

Who  brings  glad  news  ? 
Bluebird  brings  glad  news. 

What  is  the  glad  news  Bluebird  sings  ? 
Bluebird  tells  me,  "  Spring  is  come." 

What  is  the  song  the  little  girl  sings  ? 

The  little  girl  sings,  "Bain,  rain,  go  away." 

What  is  the  song  the  little  boy  sings  ? 

The  little  boy  sings,  "Jump  and  run  —  away,  away." 

9.    Seat   work.    See  Chapter  1,11  ;  Chapter  V,  9;   Chap- 
ter VI,  8;  Chapter  VIII,  7,  and  Chapter  IX,  9. 

Reconstruct  the  rhyme  from  memory,  using  small  cards 
in  the  envelopes. 

All   these   forms   of    seat  work   with   word   cards   are 
good,  but   it  is  not  necessary  or  advisable  to 
give  all  forms  with  each  rhyme.      Such  forms 
should  be  chosen  as  will  tend  to   continuous  progress  in 
neatness,  difficulty,  and  independence  on  the  part  of  the 
child. 


126  LEARNING  TO  READ 

10.  Phonics.  Teach  tlie  sound  of  t  in  tell  and  of  n  in 
news.  See  Chapter  IV,  9;  Chapter  V,  10,  and  Chapter 
VIT,  10. 

The  pupil  should  have  drill  on  the  initial  consonant 
sound  in  five  ways,  (a)  He  should  have  drill  '^n  the  first 
[Page  23:  3;  analysis  of  the  word  containing  the  ne;v  sound, 
p.  25;  8]  ^g  shown  on  phonetic  cards,  ih)  He  should  be 
required  to  find  the  letter  and  sound  in  words  on  chart  and 
board,  {c)  He  should  be  able  to  distinguish  the  sound 
in  words  repeated  to  him.  (c/)  He  should  be  able  to 
give  a  list  of  words  beginning  Avith  a  required  sound. 
As  already  stated,  these  words  need  not  be  limited  to 
words  he  has  learned  to  read,  (e)  He  should  be  able 
to  tell  the  sound  of  the  consonant  instantly  when  he  sees 
it  written  alone. 


CHAPTER   XI 

THE  PRIMER,  PAGES  47-55 ;  THE  CHART,  PAGES  18-21 

Rhyme  IX 

Little  squirrel,  run  around, 
Look  for  acorns  on  the  ground. 

squirrel  look  around 

acorns  on  ground 

(Chart,  p.  18  ;  Primer,  p.  47.) 

1.   Tell  the  story,  introducing  the  rhyme. 

The  Tale  of  Squirrel  Frisk 

It  was  autumn.  The  nuts  were  ripe.  The  boys  had 
been  busy  for  days  gathering  them.  The  squirrels  were 
busy,  too.     Every  one  was  gatherinQ-  nuts  and 

.  ,  r  1  [Pages  2-4] 

puttuig  them  away  for  the  wmter. 

Did  I  say  every  one  ?  Then  I  made  a  mistake ;  for  one 
little  gray  squirrel  named  Frisk  sat  in  the  sunshine  on  a 
low  branch  and  did  nothing  but  watch  the  otheTs. 

"Why  are  you  not  gathering  nuts?"  asked  an  old 
squirrel. 

"Time  enough  yet,"  answered  Frisk,  in  such  a  sleepy 
voice. 

"Time  enough!"  cried  the  old  squirreL  "It  will  be 
winter  very  soon  now." 

127 


128  LEARNING   TO   READ 

''Go  away  and  don't  bother  me.  I  want  to  sit  here  in 
the  sun  and  rest,"  said  Frisk. 

"Rest!"  repeated  the  old  squirrel.  "You  will  have  all 
winter  to  rest.     Now  is  the  time  to  work. 

'Little  squirrel,  run  around. 
Look  for  acorns  on  the  ground.'" 

And  the  old  squirrel,  scolding  and  chattering,  went  off  to 
his  work. 

A  blue  jay  flew  to  the  branch  and,  cocking  his  wise  old 
head  to  one  side,  looked  at  Frisk. 

"What  did  that  old  squirrel  just  say  to  you,  Frisk  ?"  he 
asked. 

"Oh,  he  said, 

'  Little  squirrel,  run  around, 
Look  for  acorns  on  the  ground.'  " 

"Why  do  you  not  do  what  he  says?"  asked  the  jay. 
"Winter  will  soon  be  here.     Then  what  will  you  do?" 

"Why  don't  you  gather  some  nuts  yourself?"  asked 
Frisk. 

"I  don't  have  to  gather  nuts.  I  just  watch  where  you 
silly  squirrels  hide  your  acorns.  Then  I  help  myself  from 
your  stores.     So 

'  Little  squirrel,  run  around. 
Look  for  acorns  on  the  ground,' 

and  remember  to  find  some  for  me,  too.  Ha !  ha !  ha ! " 
screeched  the  jay.     And  off  he  flew. 

"Well,"  said  Frisk,  "if  Mr.  Blue  Jay  thinks  I'm  going 


THE   METHOD    APPLIED  129 

to  work  this  pleasant  day  gathering  nuts  for  him  to  steal, 
he  is  much  mistaken."  So  saying,  Frisk  curled  himself 
up  in  a  ball,  and  was  soon  fast  asleep. 

Up  blew  the  wind.  How  cold  it  grew !  Frisk  woke 
from  his  nap,  shivering. 

"  Oo-oo-oo,"  blew  the  wind,  "  oo-oo-oo,  oo-oo-oo-oo,  win- 
ter is  coming.  Hurry,  little  squirrel,  and  gather  food  for 
the  winter.     This  is  your  last  chance.     Oo-oo-oo-oo-oo." 

Down  from  his  branch  jumped  Frisk.  How  he  worked 
all  the  rest  of  that  beautiful  autumn  day !  And  what 
a  lot  of  nuts  he   gathered  !     No  one  had  to  say  now  — 

"  Little  squirrel,  run  around, 
Look  for  acorns  on  the  ground," 

for  no  other  squirrel,  little  or  big,  gathered  as  many  as 
Frisk.  He  hid  them  away  in  such  a  safe  place !  You 
couldn't  have  found  them  if  you  had  searched  all  day. 
Even  that  sly  old  thief,  the  blue  jay,  couldn't  find  where 
Frisk  had  hidden  his  nuts. 

2.  Teach  the  rhyme.      See  Chapter  III,  2. 

3.  Dramatize  the  story.  Several  children  represent  the 
busy  little  squirrels  gathering  nuts  for  winter.  One  child, 
curled  up  on  a  chair  or  bench,  takes  the  part 

of  Frisk.     Other  children  are  the  old  squirrel, 

the  blue  jay,  and  the  wind.     In  dramatizing,  follow  the 

events  of  the  story. 

4.  Drill  on  the  written  rhyme.  See  Chapter  III,  4,  G,  7,  8, 
9;    Chapter  IV,  4;    Chapter  VI,   5;    Chapter 

VIII,  3,  and  Chapter  X,  5.  [Pages  15-16] 


130  LEARNING   TO   READ 

5.  Picture  study.      (Chart,    page     18 ;    Primer,    p.     47.) 
What   are    the    squirrels  doing?     Show    me    lazy  Frisk. 

-  „,     Has  he  gathered  any  nuts?   Why  not?    Doesn't 

[Pages  7-8]  *  .  f  .  '^  . 

he  know  winter  is  coming  ?  What  did  he 
say  to  the  people  who  told  him  to  gather  nuts  ?  Who 
almost  blew  him  from  his  branch  ?  What  did  the  wind 
say  to  Frisk  ?  Did  Frisk  gather  any  nuts  ?  Do  you 
think  the  wind  blew  some  acorns  from  the  tree  for  Frisk  ? 

6.  Reading  from  the  board. 

Little  squirrel,  run. 
Run  around,  little  squirrel. 
Run  on  the  ground. 
Run  around  on  the  ground. 
Run  for  acorns,  little  squirrel. 
Little  squirrel,  run  around. 
Look  for  acorns. 
Look  in  the  tree. 
Look  on  the  ground. 
Look  around,  little  pquirrel. 
ages  Look  for  some  acorns  on  the  ground. 

Look  for  other  acorns  on  the  tree. 
Look  the  ground  over  and  over. 
Look  in  the  tree  again  and  again. 

The  little  squirrel  is  on  the  ground. 

The  little  squirrel  runs  around  and  around. 

The  squirrel  looks  for  acorns. 

Bring  some  acorns  to  the  little  squirrel. 

Run  to  the  tree,  little  squirrel. 
Run  and  jump  over  the  ground. 


[Pages  47-49] 
[Pages  7-8] 


THE   METHOD   APPLIED  131 

Run  around  the  tree,  little  squirrel. 
Run  and  jump  around  and  around. 
Spring,  little  squirrel,  spring  into  the  tree. 
I  want  some  acorns,  little  squirrel. 
Bring  me  some  acorns. 
Jump  to  the  ground. 
Brinof  the  acorns  to  me. 

Run  away,  little  squirrel. 

Run  to  the  other  tree. 

Come  again,  little  squirrel. 

Come  again  to  nie. 

The  little  squirrel  is  in  the  tree. 

The  little  squirrel  wants  acorns. 

The  squirrel  is  glad. 

The  squirrel  jumps  for  joy. 

The  squirrel  wants  some  acorns. 

Squirrel  wants  acorns  for  the  little  squirrels. 

Look  around,  little  squirrel. 

Look  for  acorns  for  the  little  squirrels. 

Bring  acorns  to  the  little  squirrels. 

Tell  the  little  squirrels  to  look  for  acorns. 
Tell  the  squirrels  to  look  on  the  ground. 
Tell  the  squirrels  to  look  in  the  tree. 
Tell  the  squirrels  to  run  to  the  tree. 
Tell  the  squirrels  to  jump  over  the  ground. 

Bluebird  is  in  the  tree  with  the  squirrel. 

Bluebird  sings  to  the  squirrel. 

Bluebird  sings  a  glad  song. 

Bluebird  sings  of  the  spring. 

"  Spring  is  come,"  sings  Bluebird. 


132  LEARNING  TO  READ 

"Sing,  sing  for  joy." 

Bluebird  brings  news  of  the  glad  spring. 

7.  Drill  in  ending  -ing.  After  this  exercise  pupils  should 
be  required  to  read  sentences  containing  verbs  ending  in 
-ing  without  any  formal  drill. 


run 

running 

play 

playing 

look 

looking 

tell 

telling 

sing 

singing 

bring 

bringfinsf 

go 

going 

jump 

jumping 

come 

coming 

spring 

springing 

8.  Silent  reading.     See  Chapter  IX,  7. 

Who  is  playing  in  the  tree  ? 
Who  is  singing  in  the  tree  ? 
Who  is  running  over  the  ground? 
Wlio  is  telling  spring  is  come  ? 
Who  is  bringing  glad  news  ? 
Who  is  looking  for  acorns  ? 
Who  is  jumping  into  the  tree? 
Who  is  springing  to  the  ground  ? 

9.  Seat  work.     See  Chapter  T,  11;  Chapter  V,  9;  Chap- 

ter VI,  8;   Chapter  VIII,   7;  Chapter  IX,    9, 

and  Chapter  X,  9. 
Pupils  arrange  words  from  envelopes  in    columns    on 
desk,  following  columns  on  board  or  on  cards  prepared  by 
teacher  for  individual  use. 

10.  Phonics.     Teach  the  sound  of  /  in /or.     See  Chapter 
X,  10. 


THE   METHOD   APPLIED 


Keep  lists  of  sight   words  on   the   board    arranged    in 
columns  according  to  the  initial  consonant,  as  — 


boy 

come 

rain 

blue 

can 

run 

briiifT 

11.  Exercise  in  phrasing.  The  following  phrases  and  short 
sentences,  all  of  which  are  taken  from  rhymes  already 
learned,  are  to  be  written  on  the  board.  Pupils  are  to  be 
drilled  in  reading  these  expressions  fluently  and  with  nat- 
ural expression.  Any  tendency  to  pause  between  words 
that  belong  together,  to  read  jerkily  or  with  hesitation, 
may  thus  be  overcome. 

Come  away. 

Come  and  play. 

Boys  and  girls. 

The  rain. 

The  rain  is  over. 

Go  away. 

Rain,  go  away. 

Sing  for  joy. 

With  me. 

Run  with  me. 

Jump  and  run. 

Come  again. 

Some  other  day. 

Come  again  some  other  day. 

Boys  and  girls  want  to  play. 

Run  to  the  tree. 

Little  boy. 


134  LEARNING  TO   READ 

Run,  little  boy. 

A  song. 

Sing  a  song. 

Sing  a  song  to  me. 

The  glad  news. 

The  glad  news  bring. 

Run  around. 

Little  squirrel,  run  around. 

Sing,  little  Bluebird. 

Look  for  acorns. 

Tell  of  the  spring. 

On  the  ground. 

Look  on  the  ground. 

Note:  Teachers  who  are  not  to  use  the  Primer  will  turn  over  to 
Chapter  XVIII,  and  continue  their  work  in  accordance  with  direc- 
tions given  iu  that  and  the  following  chapters. 


CHAPTER   XII 

THE  PRIMER,  PAGES  56-64 
Rhyme  X 

Little  bird,  fly  to  the  tree  ; 
There  a  little  nest  I  see. 

there  nest  see  fly 

(Primer,  p.  56.) 
1.  Tell  the  story,  introducing  the  rhyme. 

RoBix  Redbreast 

Robin  Redbreast  was  hopping  abont  on  the  lawn.  Very 
busy  he  seemed  this  bright  spring  morning.  Indeed, 
every    day    was    a   busy  dav    for    Robin   iiist 

.  .  .         "      .  [Page  3:  4, 5] 

now;  for  in  his  nest,  hidden  in  tlie  old  tree 
near  the  porch,  were  three  baby  birds.  Such  hungry  little 
fellows  you  never  saw !  All  day  long  they  cried,  "  Peep, 
peep!  peep,  peep!"  which  is  the  birds'  way  of  saying, 
"More  worms  !  more  worms  !  "  This  was  the  reason  why 
Robin  Redbreast  was  so  very  busy. 

James  stood  at  the  window,  watching  Robin.  He  saw 
him  take  two  or  three  little  running  hops,  cock  his  head 
to  one  side,  look  at  the  ground  with  his  bright  eye,  then 
dig  his  bill  into  the  earth  and  begin  to  pull  out  a  large 
worm.     The  worm  did  not  want  to  come,  and  Robin  was 

135 


136  LEARNING   TO   READ 

SO  busy  pulling  and  tugging  that  he  did  not  see  some- 
thing that  was  happening  just  back  of  him. 

Mrs.  Gray  Pussy  was  looking  for  a  breakfast,  also.  She 
saw  the  nice  fat  robin  on  the  lawn  and  said  to  herself, 
"  He  will  make  a  fine  breakfast  for  me.  I  must  catch 
him." 

So  Pussy  crouched  down  close  to  the  ground,  then 
slowly,  softly  she  began  to  creep,  creep,  creep,  nearer 
and  nearer  to  Robin  Redbreast. 

Just  then  James  looked  that  way  and  saw  Pussy. 
Quickly  he  cried  out  to  the  robin, 

"  Little  bird,  fly  to  the  tree, 
There  a  little  nest  I  see." 

But  the  window  was  closed,  and  Robin  did  not  hear  the 
call.  He  kept  on  pulling  and  pulling  at  the  worm,  and 
Pussy  kept  on  creeping,  creeping,  nearer  and  nearer. 

Just  as  she  was  about  to  spring  on  Robin,  James  threw 
up  the  window  and  called  as  loud  as  he  could, 
"  Little  bird,  fly  to  the  tree, 
There  a  little  nest  I  see." 

Robin  looked  up !  He  let  go  of  the  worm  and  flew 
swiftly  to  his  nest  in  the  old  tree.  There  he  sang  and 
sang,  "  Cheer-up  !  cheer-up  !  I  have  lost  my  breakfast,  but 
Pussy  has  lost  hers,  too.  So,  cheer-up !  cheer-up !  cheer- 
up  ! " 

2.  Teach  the  rhyme.     See  Chapter  III,  2. 

3.  Dramatize  the  story.  One  child  represents  Robin  hop- 
ping   about    on    the    ground ;    another   represents    Pussy 


THE  METHOD   APPLIED  137 

creeping  softly  to  catch  Robin;   a  third  child    [Pageii;6; 
may  be  James  and   warn   Robin.     Sometimes      p  13;  9] 
the  children  like  a  group  of  children  to  represent  Robin's 
little  birds  in  the  nest. 

4.  Drill  on  new  words  used  in  the  rhyme;  This  drill  should 
be  given  both  on  the  board  and  with  the  rp^ges  isie; 
word  cards.  pp  60-61] 

5.  Picture  study.  (Primer,  page  56.)  What  is  Robin 
trying  to  do  ?  For  whom  does  he  want  the  worms  ? 
Who  else  is  looking  for  a  breakfast  ?  What  does  she 
want  for  breakfast  ?     AVho  sees   Pussy  try  to 

.  [Pages  7-8] 

catch  Robin  ?    What  does  James  call  to  Robin  ? 
Where   is  Robin's  nest  ?     Will  Pussy  catch   him  ? 

6.  Reading  from  the  Primer.      Read  the  stories  following 
the  rhyme,  pages  57-04.     This  may  be  supple-  [Pages  15-I6; 
mented  with  sentences  on  the  board,  as  found    p-60;  1-3] 
necessary. 

7.  Seat  work.  Using  small  word  cards,  have  children 
make  orio'inal  sentences.  It  adds  interest  to  this  exercise 
if  occasionally  after  a  child  has  finished  making  sentences 
he  is  allowed  to  read  his  original  sentences  to  the  class. 
Sometimes  pupils  may  exchange  seats  and  read  the  sen- 
tences from  their  neighbors'  desks. 

8.  Phonics.     Teach  the  sound  of  tit  in  there. 
See  Cha^Dter  X,  10. 


CHAPTER   XIII 

THE  PRIMER,   PAGES  67-88 

Rhymes  XI,  XII,  XIII 

Little  Boy  Blue, 

Come  blow  your  horn. 

blow  your  horn 

(Primer,  p.  67.) 

The  sheep  are  in  the  meadow, 
The  cows  are  in  the  corn. 

sheep      meadow       cows       corn       are 

(Primer,  p.  73.) 

Where  is  the  little  boy  who  looks  after  the 
sheep? 
He  is  under  the  haycock,  fast  asleep, 
where  after  under  he 

fast  asleep  haycock 

(Primer,  p.  78.) 

In  the  Primer  the  above  rhyme  is  divided  into  three 
parts.  Each  part  is  taken  up  separately  for  drill  on  new 
words.  The  whole  rhyme  can  best  be  taught  at  once, 
however.     One  story  is  sufficient  to  introduce  it. 

138 


THE   METHOD   APPLIED  139 

1.  Tell  the  story,  introducing  the  rhyme. 

The  Story  of  Boy  Blue 

"Dear,  dear!"  said  Farmer  Brown  one  morning. 
"  What  sliall  I  do  ?  I  must  go  to  town  this  morning  and 
there  is  no  one  I  can  leave  to  take  care  of  my 

„  -^        [Pages  2-4] 

cows  and  sheep. 

Just  as  he  finished  speaking,  a  little  boy  came  walking 
along;  the  road. 

"Good  morning,  Farmer  Brown,"  he  said.  "Do  you 
want  a  boy  to  work  on  your  farm  ?  " 

"  Yes,  indeed  I  do,"  answered  the  farmer.  "  I  want  a 
boy  to  look  after  my  cows  and  shee})." 

"  Oh,  I  can  do  that,"  said  the  little  boy. 

"  Are  you  sure  you  can  ?  "  asked  the  farmer. 

"  Yes,  if  you  will  tell  me  just  what  to  do." 

"  Well,"  said  Farmer  Brown,  "  I  don't  want  the  sheep 
to  get  into  the  meadow,  and  the  cows  must  not  be  allowed 
to  go  into  the  corn." 

"  I  wdll  watch  them  every  minute.  I  w^on't  let  one  get 
out  of  my  sight." 

"Very  well,"  said  Farmer  Brown.  "What  is  your 
name  : 

"My  name  is  Willie,  but  every  one  calls  me  Boy  Blue, 
because  I  dress  in  blue  and  because  I  have  a  blue  horn." 

"Well,  Boy  Blue,  I  have  to  go  to  town.  Watch  the 
sheep  and  the  cows  well.  If  any  try  to  run  away,  just 
blow  your  horn  and  they  will  come  back." 


140  LEARNING   TO   READ 

"  Oh,  don't  3^011  worry.  I  know  how  to  take  care  of 
the  cows  and  sheep,"  said  Boy  Blue. 

Farmer  Brown  went  off  to  town  and  for  some  time  Boy 
Blue  watched  the  cows  and  sheep.  Toward  noon  the 
sheep  were  nibbling  the  grass  quietly  and  most  of  the 
cows  were  asleep  in  the  shade.  The  rest  were  standing 
in  the  brook  under  the  tall  trees.  None  of  them  had  tried 
to  run  away. 

"  These  cows  and  sheep  are  so  good  and  quiet,"  thought 
Boy  Blue,  "  I  need  not  stand  here  watching  them.  I  will 
sit  down  in  the  shade  of  the  big  haycock." 

But  alas  and  alas !  He  had  been  sitting  there  only  a 
short  time  when  his  head  began  to  nod  —  nod  —  nod  and 
soon  he  was  fast  asleep! 

At  noon  Farmer  Brown  got  back  from  town  and  the 
first  thing  he  saw  was  —  the  sheep  eating  the  grass  in  the 
meadow  !  And  the  second  thing  he  saw  was  —  the  cows 
trampling  down  the  young  corn  !  Then  he  looked  for 
Boy  Blue,  but  no  Boy  Blue  could  he  see. 
"  Little  Boy  Blue, 
Come  blow  your  horn," 

he  called.     But  no  Boy  Blue  answered  him. 
Again  he  called, 

"  Little  Boy  Blue, 
Come  blow  your  horn, 
The  sheep  are  in  the  meadow, 
The  cows  are  in  the  corn." 

But  Boy  Blue  did  not  answer. 


THE  METHOD   APPLIED  141 

Then  the  farmer  called  to  his  wife,  "  Where  is  the  little 
boy  who  looks  after  the  sheep  ? " 

And  his  wife  answered,  "  He  is  under  the  haycock,  fast 
asleep." 

Away  to  the  haycock  ran  Farmer  Brown.  There  in  the 
shade  lay  Boy  Blue  fast  asleep.  The  farmer  shook  him 
and  called, 

"  Little  Boy  Blue, 
Corae  blow  your  horn, 
The  sheep  are  in  the  meadow, 
The  cows  are  in  the  corn." 

Quickly  Boy  Blue  jumped  to  his  feet !  He  blew 
the  horn  again  and  again.  Away  from  the  meadow 
scampered  the  sheep,  and  the  cows  ran  as  quickly  from 
the  corn. 

Boy  Blue  was  ever  so  sorry.  "  I  will  never,  never  again 
sleep  in  the  daytime,"  he  said. 

And  because  he  was  so  sorry,  Farmer  Brown  forgave 
him.  Never  again  did  Boy  Blue  let  the  cows  and  sheep 
run  away. 

2.  Teach  the  rhyme.     See  Chapter  III,  2. 

3.  Dramatize  the  story. 

Characters  :  Little  Boy  Blue,  Farmer  Brown, 
the  Farmer's  Wife,  some  children  for  sheep, 
and  some  for  cows. 

Follow  the  incidents  in  the  story. 

4.  Drill  on  new  words  used  in  the  rhyme.     Use  the 

V.        A  1  J  J  [Pages  15-16] 

board  and  word  cards. 


142  LEARNING   TO   READ 

5.  Picture  study.  (Primer,  page  G7.)  Who  is  sitting  on 
the  fence  ?  Does  he  look  tired  ?  Do  you  think  he  is 
tired  because  he  has  to  look  after  the  cows  and  the  sheep? 

What    is   Boy    Blue    asking    Farmer    Brown  ? 
Did  Farmer  Brown  let  Boy  Blue  stay  to  take 
care  of  the  cows  and  sheep  ? 

(Page  73.)  Where  is  little  Boy  Blue  now  ?  Who  is 
shaking  him  ?  What  does  Farmer  Brown  say  to  Boy 
Blue  ? 

(Page  77.)     Where  are  the  cows  ?     What  is  Boy  Blue 
doing  ?     Do  you  think  the  cows  will  run  from  the  corn  ? 
See  Chapter  III,  5. 

6.  ReadiiiT^  from  the  Primer.  The  stories  immediately  fol- 
lowing each  part  of  the  rhyme  are  to  be  used  as  soon  as 
[Page  47;  22;  ^^^  ^^^^^  words  of  that  part  of  the  rhyme  are 

pp.  51-53J     mastered. 

The  sentences  immediately  following  the  third  part  of 
the  rhyme  may  be  read  by  two  pupils  as  a  dialogue. 

7.  Seat  work.  Cut  pages  from  any  old  book  or  magazine, 
using  good  type.  Let  pupils  underline  all  the  words  they 
know,  and  all  that  they  can  make  out  for  themselves  by 
sounding. 

8.  Phonics.  After  the  first  part  of  the  rhyme,  teach  the 
n>       OQ  OCT  sound  of  y  in  your;  after  the  second  part,  the 

somid  of  sh  in  sheep;  and  after  the  third  part, 
the  sound  of  h  in  he.     See  Chapter  X,  10. 


CHAPTER   XIV 

THE  PRIMER,  PAGES  91-103 
Rhyme  XIV 

Come,  little  snowflakes, 
Fl}"^  round  and  round, 
Cover  with  snow 
The  cold,  bare  ground, 
snowflakes         cover         bare         snow         cold 


1.  Tell  the  story,  introducing  the  rhyme. 
The  Snowflakes 


(Primer,  p.  91.) 


Many  little  soft  white  snowflakes  lived  in  a  big  fleecy 
cloud  in  Skvland.     The  Frost  Kino;  was  their 

•^  ^  [Pages  2-4] 

lather. 

One  day  the  Frost  King  looked  down  on  the  earth. 

"  How  cold  and  bare  the  earth  looks  to-day  !  I  fear 
that  the  little  seeds  hidden  away  in  the  ground  will  freeze 
unless  I  do  something  to  help  them." 

Then  he  turned  to  the  little  snowflakes  and  called  in  his 
loud,  cheery  voice, 

"  Come,  little  snoAvflakes, 
Fly  round  and  round, 
Cover  with  snow 
The  cold,  bare  ground." 

143 


144  .     LEARNING  TO   READ 

But  the  snowflakes  did  not  answer  him.  Neither  did 
they  move  from  their  cloud  home. 

"  They  could  not  have  heard  me,"  said  the  Frost  King. 
"  I  must  call  again."  So  again  he  called,  this  time 
louder  than  before, 

"  Come,  little  snowflakes, 
Fly  round  and  round, 
Cover  with  snow 
The  cold,  bare  ground." 

But  the  snowflakes  answered  not  a  word,  nor  did  they 
move. 

"  Why,  what  can  be  the  matter  ? "  thought  the  Frost 
King.  "  My  children,  did  you  not  hear  me  call  you  ?  "  he 
cried. 

"  Yes,  father,  we  heard  you,  but  we  do  not  want  to 
leave  our  soft,  fleecy  bed  in  Skyland  to  go  to  the  cold, 
hard  ground." 

"  Why,  for  shame,  children  !  Do  you  want  the  little 
seeds  to  die  ?  Don't  you  want  the  ground  covered  with 
snow  for  Christmas  ?  It  is  only  two  days  before 
Christmas  eve,  and  if  the  ground  is  not  well  covered  with 
snow, how  can  Santa  Claus  visit  the  earth  children?   So — ■ 

'Come,  little  snowflakes. 
Fly  round  and  round. 
Cover  with  snow 
The  cold,  bare  ground.'  " 

Slowly  the  little  snowflakes  slid  from  the  great  fleecy 


THE   METHOD   APPLIED  145 

cloud.     Softly  one  by  one  they  fell  to  the  cold  earth,  far, 
far  below  them. 

The  little  earth  children  looked  np  and  saw  the  flakes. 
How  glad  they  were !  They  clapped  their  hands  and 
shouted, 

"  Come,  little  snowflakes, 
Fly  round  and  round, 
Cover  with  snow 
The  cold,  bare  ground." 

2.  Teach  the  rhyme.     See  Chapter  III,  2. 

3.  This  story  may  be  dramatized,  but  Ijetter  results  will  be 
obtained  by  waiting  until  after  the  next  story  has  been 
told  and  the  next  rhyme  memorized.    See  Chapter  XV,  3. 

4.  Drill  on  new  words  used  in  the  rhyme. 

5.  Picture  study.  (Primer,  page  91.)  What  kind  of 
fairies  are  these  ?  How  do  you  know  they  are  snowflake 
fairies  ?  Where  did  the  snowflakes  live  ?  Who  called  to 
them?  What  did  their  father  call?  Did  the 
snowflakes  like  to  leave  their  nice  soft  beds  in 
skyland  ?  Are  some  still  in  bed  ?  Do  the  ones  who  have 
started  for  the  earth  seem  glad  to  go  ?  W^h}-  are  they 
looking  back  at  their  beds  in  cloudland  ? 

6.  Reading  from  the  Primer.     Pages  91-103. 

7.  Review  exercises.  Two  review  exercises  follow  this 
rhyme,  the  dialogue  on  pages  98-99,  and  the  lines  from 
rhymes  already  taught  on  pages  102-103. 

In  all  dialogue  work  insist  on  good  expression.     The 


146  LEARNING   TO   READ 

[Page 52;  6;  children  should  not  read  the  dialogue  merely; 
pp.  53-55]  they  should  talk  it,  act  it.  It  is  not  necessary 
that  two  children  only  take  part.  Eighteen  children,  nine 
boys  and  nine  girls,  may  read  the  dialogue  in  this  lesson. 
As  it  destroys  the  spirit  and  interest  in  the  exercise  to 
have  the  teacher  call  the  name  of  each  child  who  is  to 
read,  or  even  to  indicate  the  reader  by  saying  "  next," 
arrange  the  children  in  two  lines  facing  each  other,  the 
boys  in  one  line,  the  girls  in  the  other.  Have  it  under- 
stood that  the  first  boy  reads  the  first  sentence  for  "  Boy," 
the  first  girl  reads  the  first  sentence  for  "  Girl,"  the  second 
boy  the  second  sentence  for  "  Boy,"  the  second  girl  the 
second  sentence  for  "  Girl,"  and  so  on,  back  and  forth 
down  the  lines.  The  boy  who  asks  the  question  looks  at 
the  girl  who  is  to  answer,  and  in  answering  the  girl  looks 
at  the  boy.  In  short,  the  children  should  realize  that  they 
are  talking  to  each  other,  not  reading  groups  of  words 
from  a  book. 

The  other  exercise,  pages  102-103,  is  given  chiefly  for 
practice  in  correct  phrasing. 

8.  Seat  work.      Children  group  words  on  small  cards  ac- 

cording; to  the  initial  consonant.    Use  small  cards 

[Pages  69-70]  ° 

already  used  for  other  kinds  of  seat  work,  as  de- 
scribed in  Chapter  III,  11,  and  in  following  chapters.  Fol- 
low out  constantly  now  the  suggestions  in  Chapter  IX,  9. 

9.  Phonics.     Drill  on  endings  -s,  -f?i</,  -er,  -ed ;  Primer, 
p.  100.     See  Chapter  X,  10. 


CHAPTER   XV 

THE  PRIMER,   PAGES    104-108 
Rhyme  XV 

Now  the  wind  begins  to  blow, 
Faster,  faster  comes  the  snow. 

now  wind  begins 

(Primer,  p.  104.) 

1.  Tell  the  story,  introducing  the  rhyme.  This  story  is  really 
a  continuation  of  the  story  for  Rhyme  XIV. 

[Pages  2-4J 

Before  telling  this,  review  the  last  story. 

The  Wind  axd  the  Snowflakes 

You  remember  the  snowflakes  did  not  want  to  leave  the 
great  fleecy  cloud  and  go  down  to  the  cold,  bare  earth. 
So,  although  they  had  to  go  when  the  Frost  King  ordered 
it,  they  went  very  slowly — just  as  slowly  as  boys  and  girls 
sometimes  do  things  they  would  rather  not  do. 

The  Frost  King  saw  how  slowly  the  flakes  were  flyiug 
to  earth,  and  he  laughed  in  his  cheery  way  and  said,  "Ho! 
Ho!  Ho!  I'll  send  some  one  to  hurry  up  those  lazy  snow^- 
flakes." 

So  he  called,  "  Come  here.  North  Wind.  See  tliose  lazy 
snowflakes.  Blow  with  all  your  might  and  send  them 
flying  swiftly  to  the  earth." 

U7 


148  LEARNING  TO   RKAD 

"Oo-oo-oo!  Oo-oo-oooo  !  Oo-oo-oo-oo-oo  !  "  blew  the 
cold  North  Wind,  right  among  the  siiovvflakes.  My,  how 
they  flew !  Round  and  round,  faster  and  faster !  There 
was  no  more  hanging  ])ack,  I  can  tell  you. 

How  the  jolly  old  Frost  King  laughed  while  he  watched 
them.     He  sang  softly  to  himself, 

"  Now  the  wind  begins  to  blow, 
Faster,  faster  comes  the  snow." 

The  earth  children  looked  up  and  saw  the  snowflakes 
hurrying  and  scurrying  to  earth,  and  they,  too,  sang  as 
they  tried  to  catch  the  flakes  in  their  little  hands, 

"  Now  the  wind  begins  to  blow, 
Faster,  faster  comes  the  snow." 

Soon  the  earth  was  covered  with  a  blanket  of  soft, 
white  snow.  Still  the  wind  blew,  and  still  the  snowflakes 
flew  to  the  earth  until  the  drifts  were  many  and  deep  and 
the  night  came  on.  Then  the  children  ran  to  their  homes 
singing  joyously, 

"  Now  the  wind  begins  to  blow, 
Faster,  faster  comes  the  snow." 

For  well  the  children  knew  what  fun  they  would  have  in 
the  morning,  playing  in  the  snow. 

2.  Teach  the  rhyme.      See  Chapter  IH,  2. 

3.  Dramatize  the  story.  A  part  of  the  schoolroom  is  Sky- 
land.     A  number  of  children — as  many  as  are  desired — • 

are  snowflakes.     One  child  may  be  the   Frost 
King,  and  another   North  Wind.     When   the 


THE  METHOD  APPLIED  149 

snowflakes  first  leave  Sky  land,  they  should  move  very 
slowly,  turning  round  and  round;  when  the  wind  begins 
to  blow,  they  turn  swiftly  and  more  swiftly  until  they 
sink  softly  to  the  floor.  If  the  teacher  wishes,  the  chil- 
dren at  their  desks  may  be  the  earth  children;  but  it 
should  be  kept  in  mind  that  an  audience  is  as  necessary 
to  the  success  of  a  dramatized  story  in  the  schoolroom  as 
are  the  actors. 

4.  Drill  on  new  words  used  in  the  rhyme.  Use  the  board  and 
word  cards. 

5.  Picture  study.  (Primer,  page  104.)  Are  these  little 
snowflakes  hurrying  to  the  earth  ?  Who  is  driving  them  ? 
Who  asked  the  wind  to  blow  and  drive  the  snowflakes 
to  earth  ?  Why  ?  What  did  the  children  sing  when 
they  saw  the  snowflakes  flying  to  the  earth  ? 

See  Chapter  III,  5. 

6.  Reading  from  the  Primer.  Pages  104-108.  See  Chapter 
I,  Sec.  12,  1,  2,  12-15. 

7.  Seat  work.  It  should  be  understood  that  the  bus}'  work 
already  suggested  in.  preceding  chapters  of  this  Manual 
is  to  be  used  again  and  again,  adapted  to  the 

1  -I     •       X         w  A    X       1  T  [Pages69-72] 

new  work  as  it   is   taught.      Actual    readins; 

should  form  an  increasing  part  of  the  seat  work.     See 

Chapter  IX,  9. 


CHAPTER   XVT 

THE  PRIMER,  PAGES  111-123 
Rhyme  XVI 

Tell  me,  what  does  Bluebird  say, 
When  he  sings  at  peep  of  day  ? 

does        say         when         at         peep 

(Primer,  p.  111.) 
1.   Tell  the  story,  introducing  the  rhyme. 

The   Bluebird's   Song 

Jack  Barton  should  have  been  a  very  bappy  little  boy. 
He  had  a  good  home  and  a  kind  mother  and  father  who 
did  everything  they  could  to  make  him  happj;. 
But  still  Jack  was  always  grumbling,  lie 
hated  to  go  to  bed  at  night;  he  hated  to  get  up  in  the 
morning ;  he  hated  to  go  to  school ;  he  hated  work  of 
all  kinds. 

Tom  Nelson  was  a  very  poor  boy.  He  had  no  home,  no 
parents.  He  worked  for  the  neighbors.  Every  morning 
he  was  up  with  the  birds.  Then  how  busy  he  was  till 
school  time  !  In  winter  he  shoveled  paths  and  took  care 
of  furnaces ;  in  summer  he  mowed  lawns  and  ran  errands. 
He  did  anything  he  could  find  to  do,  for  he  had  to  make 
his  own  living.     Still  Tom  was  always  happy.     No  one 

150 


THE  METHOD   APPLIED  lol 

ever  saw  liim  without  a  smile  on  his  face.  Usually  he  was 
whistling  or  singing.  People  all  said  that  one  glimpse  of 
Tom's  bright  face  made  them  feel  glad. 

One  morning  as  Jack  was  walking  slowly  to  school, 
Tom  overtook  him. 

"Hullo,  Jack,"  cried  Tom,  cheerily.  "What's  the  mat- 
ter ?     You  don't  look  very  happy." 

"Well,  I'm  not  happy,"  said  Jack,  crossly.  "I  hate  to 
go  to  school."  Then  as  he  saw  Tom's  bright  face  he  said, 
"Say,  Tom,  what  makes  you  so  happy  all  the  time?" 

"Oh,  something  that  Bluebird  told  me  one  morning  very 
early." 

"Something  that  Bluebird  told  you!  What  was  it? 
Tell  me." 

"No,  you  must  find  out  for  yourself,"  answered  Tom. 
"Come,  hurry,  or  we  shall  be  late." 

Away  ran  Tom,  but  Jack  only  walked,  and  so  slowly 
that  he  was  late  for  school. 

All  that  day  in  school  Jack  kept  thinking,  "I  wonder 
what  Bluebird  told  Tom  that  makes  him  so  happy.  I 
must  find  out.  I  shall  ask  the  wood  folk;  they  must 
now. 

The  next  day  was  Saturday,  and  as  soon  as  Jack  had 
finished  his  breakfast  he  ran  into  the  woods.  He  hadn't 
gone  far  when  he  met  a  squirrel. 

"Squirrel,  Squirrel,"  he  called, 

"  Tell  nie,  what  does  Bluebird  say. 
When  he  sings  at  peep  of  day  ?  " 


152  LEARNING   TO   READ 

"I'm  not  the  one  to  ask,"  said  the  squirrel,  and 
before  Jack  could  say  another  word,  he  scampered 
away. 

Next,  Jack  met  a  rabbit.  "Good-morning,  Rabbit," 
he  said, 

"  Tell  me,  what  does  Bluebird  say, 
When  he  sings  at  peep  of  day  ?  " 

"Oh,  don't  ask  me,"  said  the  rabbit,  and  away  he 
hopped. 

"Dear  me,  I  wish  they  wouldn't  be  in  such  a  hurry. 
They  might  at  least  tell  me  whom  to  ask,"  said  Jack. 

"What  do  you  want  to  ask  ?"  said  a  small  voice  at  his 
feet.     "  I'm  never  in  a  hurry." 

Jack  looked  down  and  saw  a  little  snail  creeping  along. 
So  he  said, 

"  Tell  me,  what  does  Bluebird  say, 
When  he  sings  at  peep  of  day  ?  " 

"I'm  surely  not  the  one  you  should  ask,"  said  the 
snail. 

"  Whom  shall  I  ask  then?"  said  Jack. 

"  Why,  ask  Bluebird,  of  course,"  answered  the  snail. 
"  But  you  must  ask  him  very  early  in  the  morning,  at 
the  peep  of  day." 

"  Oh,  dear,"  said  Jack,  "  I  can  never  get  up  so  early  as 
that.  Yet  I  do  so  want  to  know  what  Bluebird  told  Tom 
that  makes  him  so  happy." 

"  Well,  go  to  bed  early  to-night,"  said  the  snail.    "  Then 


THE  METHOD  APPLIED  153 

you  will  feel  like  rising  early  in  the  morning.  That's  what 
we  wood  folk  do." 

"  Well,  I  will  try  it,"  said  Jack;  and  he  walked  slowly 
toward  his  home. 

That  night  at  eight  o'clock,  Jack  put  away  his  book 
and  saying,  "  Good-night,  Mother,  good-night.  Father," 
went  upstairs  and  straight  to  bed.  Soon  he  was  fast 
asleep  and  dreaming  that  a  hundred  bluebirds  were 
perched  on  the  foot  of  his  bed  singing  to  him. 

2.  Teach  the  rhyme.     See  Chapter  III,  2. 

3.  Dramatize  the  story.  Dramatize  only  that 
part  of  the  story  which  tells  of  Jack's  visit 
to  the  wood  folk. 

4.  Drill  on  new  words.  Use  board  and  word  cards.  See 
Chapter  I,  Sec.  6. 

5.  Picture  study.  (Primer,  page  111.)  What  is  the 
little  boy's  name?  Why  has  he  come  to  the  woods? 
Who  was  the  first  animal  he  met  in  the  woods  ? 

What  is  the  rabbit  carrying  ?     What  is  he  going        *^^^ 
to  do  with  it  ?     What  did  Jack  ask  the  rabbit  ?     Did  the 
rabbit  tell  him  what  he  Avanted  to  know  ?     What  other 
animals  did  Jack  meet  ?     Did  any  one  tell  him  what  Blue- 
bird sang  at  peep  of  day  ? 

6.  Reading  from  the  Primer.  Pages  111-123.  See  Chap- 
ter I,  Sec.  13,  1-5. 

7.  Seat  work.       See  Chapter  XV,  7. 

8.  Phonics.  Teach  the  sound  of  i6'A  in  ivhcn.  See  Chap- 
ter X,  10. 


154  LEARNING   TO   READ 

Constantly  review  and  apply  sounds  already  taught. 
In  teaching  new  words,  have  children  give  the  sound  of 
the  initial  consonant,  if  it  is  one  they  kuow. 

The  following  game  often  proves  very  helpful.  Tlie 
teacher,  standing  before  the  board  with  chalk  in  hand, 
says,  "  I'm  thinking  of  a  word  that  begins  with  h "  (or 
any  other  consonant). 

Pupils  try  to  guess  the  word.     '•  Is  it  hoy  ?  " 

Teacher:  "No,  it  is  not  Z>oy;  but  hou  does  begin  with  h, 
so  I  will  write  it  on  the  board." 

The  game  goes  on  till  the  right  word  is  guessed.  When 
through,  lists  of  words  will  have  been  written  on  the  board 
something  as  follows  — 

b  8 

boy  sing 

bird  see 

blue  spring 

bring  song 

If   a  pupil  should  guess  a  wrong  word,  as  ^jZ^?/,   he 
should  be  corrected  at  once.     "  PJaii  does  not 

[Page  24 ;  5]  .  .  .  ^ 

begin   with    h.      With    what    sound    does    it 
begin  ?  " 

All  drills,  whether  merely  mechanical  or  in  the  form 
of  games,  should  be  brief,  carried  on  with  enthusiasm,  and 
without  loss  of  time. 


CHAPTER   XVII 

THE  PRIMER,   PAGES  124-138 

Rhyme   XVII 

Bluebird  sings,  "  Wake  up,  my  boy, 
Morning  is  come,  sing,  sing  for  joy." 

morning  wake  up  my 

(Primer,  p.  124.) 

1.  Tell  the  story,  introducing  the  rhyme.  This  rhyme  is 
but    a  coutiiiuation  of   rhyme    XVI ,    and    the 

•^  '  [Pages  2-4] 

story  a  continuation  of  the  last  story.     Before 
telling  this  story,  review  the  last  one. 

What  Bluebird  sang  to  Jack 

It  was  a  beautiful  spring  morning  when  Jack  Barton 
awoke  from  a  long,  sound  sleep.  It  was  still  very  early. 
The  sun  was  just  peeping  into  Jack's  window.  The  birds 
were  singing  their  morning  songs.  Jack  rubbed  his  eyes 
sleepily.  Suddenly  he  sat  straight  up  in  bed  and  listened 
with  all  his  might. 

"Was  that  Bkiebird?"  he  said  to  iiimself. 

Yes,  it  was  a  bluebird  sitting  in  tlie  cherry  tree  just  out- 
side Jack's  window.  He  was  singing  and  singing  till  you 
would  think  his  little  throat  could  not  hold  so  much  music. 

Jack  listened  quietly,  but  with  a  smiling  face,  till  Blue- 

165 


156  LEARNING  TO  READ 

bird  flew  away.  Then  he  said,  "  I  know  what  Bluebird 
told  Tom.     He  told  me,  too.     Bluebird  sings, 

'  Wake  up,  my  boy, 
Morning  is  come,  sing,  sing  for  joy.' 

I  know  now  why  Tom  sings  and  who  told  him  to  sing. 
Bluebird  has  taught  me  to  sing  and  be  happy,  also.  I 
shall  try  never  to  grumble  again." 

How  glad  his  fatlier  and  mother  were  to  see  Jack  so 
early  at  the  breakfast  table  with  a  smiling  face. 

"  Well,  Jack,"  said  Father,  "what  makes  }ou  so  happy 
this  morning  ?  " 

"Bluebird  told  me  something  this  morning  that  made 
me  so  glad.  I  shall  listen  to  him  every  morning  and  be 
glad  and  happy  every  day." 

"  That  is  good  news,"  said  Mother.     "  But 

'  Tell  me,  what  does  bluebird  say. 
When  he  sings  at  peep  of  day  ?  '  " 

"  Bluebird  sings, 

'  Wake  up,  my  boy, 
Morning  is  come,  sing,  sing  for  joy,' " 

answered  Jack. 

And  ever  after  there  were  two  happy,  bright-faced  boys 
in  town,  and  their  names  were  Tom  and  Jack. 

2.  Teach  the  rhyme.    See  Chapter  HI,  2. 

3.  Dramatize  the  rhyme.  Very  little  action  is  called  for 
here.  It  will  be  sufficient  to  have  one  child  take  the  part 
of  mother  and  ask, 


THE   METHOD   APPLIED  157 

"  Tell  me,  what  does  Bluebird  say, 
When  he  sings  at  peep  of  day  ?  " 

Another  child  may  be  Jack  and  answer, 
"Bluebird  sings, 

'Wake  up,  my  boy, 
Morning  is  come,  sing,  sing  for  joy.'  " 

4.  Drill  on  new  words. 

5.  Picturi  study.  (Primer,  page  124.)  Why  did  Jack 
wake  so  early?  Why  did  he  leave  his  window  open? 
Did  Bluebird  sing  for  Jack  ?  Where  is  he  singing  ? 
What  does  he  sing  ?  Does  his  song  make  Jack  happy  ? 
See  Chapter  III,  5. 

6.  Reading  from  the  Primer.     Pages  124-138. 

The  dialogue  beginning  on  page  132  may  be  read  as 
suggested  for  a  similar  exercise  under  rhyme  XIV.     That 
is,  some   children  may  represent  Squirrel  and  [Pages39;2; 
others  Bluebird.     Be  sure  that  the  children  get     pp-  ^o-^i] 
the  connected  thought  of  the  whole  exercise. 

7.  Phonics.    Direct  pupils'  attention  to  the  similarity  in 

the  endings  of  certain  words,  as  — 

pi  ay  me  s  ing 

^       -^  .    ^  [Pages  19-21] 

w  ay.  tr  ee  spr  ing 

d  ay  he  br  ing  „  , 

^  ^  [Pages  26-27] 

s  ay  s  ee 

A  rapid  review  of  the  rhymes  will  form  the  best  intro- 
duction to  this  study  of  sounds.  For  this  purpose  the 
rhymes  may  be  taken  up  something  as  follows,  using  the 
last  one  for  illustration. 


158  LEARNING  TO  RP:AU 

Tell  me,  what  does  Bluebird  say, 
When  he  sings  at  peep  of  day  ? 

Bluebird  sings,  "  Wake  up,  my  boy, 
Morning  is  come,  sing,  sing  for  joy." 

What  word  sounds  something  like  say  ?  The  answer — 
da>/.  With  what  sound  does  say  begin  ?  day  ?  With 
what  sound  do  both  words  end  ?  Pronounce  distinctly, 
day,  say.  What  word  sounds  like  hoy?  With  what 
sound  does  hoy  begin?  joy ^  With  what  sound  do  both 
words  end  ?     Pronounce  distinctly,  hoy,  joy. 


CHAPTER  XVIII 

THE  FIRST  READER,  PAGES  3-5 ;   THE  CHART,  PAGES 

22-24 

Rhyme   XVIII 

Fly,  little  birds,  to  the  tall  tree. 

Fly  to  your  nest  and  little  birds  three. 

fly  tall  your  nest  tliree 

(Chart,  p.  22  ;  First  Reader,  p.  .'].) 

Classes  that  use  and  complete  the  Primer  before  taking 
up  the  First  Reader  will  need  very  little  help  in  reading 
the  first  pages  of  the  First  Reader,  as  most  of 
the  words  are  already  familiar.  Nearly  all  the 
consonant  sounds  have  been  thoroughly  learned.  The 
various  drills  and  seat  work  have  developed  such  inde- 
pendence as  will  enable  the  pupils  to  master  the  new 
work  rapidly  and  with  ease. 

Pupils  who  have  not  read  the  Primer,  but  who  go  di- 
rectly from  the  Chart  into  the  First  Reader,  will  advance 
more  slowly  at  first.  They  have  not  the  vocabulary,  not 
the  same  amount  of  training  in  independent  work,  and  not 
the  practice  in  reading,  which  those  have  had  who  work 
through  the  Primer.  They  will  probaljly  need  to  spend 
yet  considerable  time  with  the  various  drills  and  seat  work 
which   continue  to  be  outlined.     Every  teacher  must  be 

159 


160  LEARNING   TO   READ 

her  own  judge,  however,  of  the  extent  to  which  her  pupils 
need  the  training  afforded  by  the  various  exercises  here 
suggested.  Every  one  of  these  exercises  is  designed  to 
serve  a  definite  purpose.  When  that  purpose  is  accom- 
phshed,  the  exercise  should  not  be  continued. 

The  last  pages  of  the  Chart  overlap  the  first  pages  of 
the  First  Reader.  The  last  two  rhymes  of  the  Chart  are 
identical  with  the  first  two  rhymes  of  the  Reader.  The 
stories  following  each  of  these  rhymes  are  similar  in  Chart 
and  Reader,  the  Chart  stories  being  somewhat  fuller  than 
the  Reader  stories.  This  overlapping  makes  the  transition 
from  Chart  to  Reader  easy,  even  for  those  who  now  take 
up  their  first  book.  Rhymes  and  stories  should  be  read 
first  from  the  Chart,  then  from  the  book. 

1.  Tell  the  story,  introducing  the  rhyme.  This  story  is  very 
similar    to    the  story  introducinor    a    previous 

[Pages  2-4]         .      .  -^  .  . 

similar  rhyme,  rhyme  X  in  the  Primer. 

Robin's  Escape 

One  bright  morning  in  spring,  James  stood  at  the  win- 
dow looking  out  at  two  robins.  The  birds  were  looking 
for  worms,  and  very  hard  they  had  to  work,  too.  For  up 
in  the  tall  tree  near  the  porch  was  a  little  nest,  and  in  the 
nest  three  baby  birds.  What  hungry  little  robins  they 
were  !  They  could  only  say, "  Peep  !  peep ! "  which  means, 
^' More !  more!"  but  they  said  that  from  morning  till 
night.     So  the  father  and  mother  robins  were  kept  busy, 


THE  METHOD   APPLIED  161 

I  can  tell  you,  looking  for  more,  more,  and  more  worms 
to  feed  their  little  ones. 

This  morning  they  were  especially  busy,  for,  you  see, 
the  babies  were  one  day  older,  and  so  one  day  hungrier 
than  they  had  been  yesterday ;  so,  of  course,  they  wanted 
more  food. 

Father  Robin  was  pulling  a  big  fat  worm  from  the 
ground,  and  Mother  Robin  was  busy  looking  for  another, 
with  her  head  cocked  to  one  side,  so  that  neither  saw  nor 
heard  pussy  as  she  came  creeping  over  the  grass.  Even 
James  was  so  interested  watching  the  robins  that  he  did 
not  see  her  either. 

Softly  pussy  crept  over  the  grass.  Nearer  and  nearer 
and  nearer  to  the  little  birds  she  crept.  Then  she  crouched 
down,  just  ready  to  spring,  w4ien  James  saw  her.  Quickly 
he  knocked  on  the  window  and  called, 

"Fly,  little  birds,  to  the  tall  tree. 
Fly  to  your  nest  and  little  birds  three." 

Off  flew  the  two  robins  to  their  nest.  How  disappointed 
pussy  looked !  She  looked  at  James  as  much  as  to  say, 
"  I  would  have  caught  at  least  one  of  these  robins  for  my 
breakfast  if  you  had  not  called, 

'  Fly,  little  birds,  to  the  tall  tree, 
Fly  to  your  nest  and  little  birds  three.'  " 

But  the  father  robin  flew  to  the  tree  top  and,  looking 
down  at  pussy,  sang  as  loud  as  he  could,  "  Cheer-up ! 
Cheer-up !     Cheer-up !  " 


162  LEARNING   TO    READ 

2.  Teach  the  rhyme.     See  Chapter  III,  2. 

3.  Dramatize  the  story.      See  Chapter  XII,  3. 

4.  Drill  on  new  words  used  in  the  rhyme. 

5.  Picture  study.  (First  Reader,  page  3.)  What  is 
the  little  girl  saying  to  the  birds  ?  (Use  rhyme  for  the 
answer.)  Where  is  the  tall  tree  ?  Call  attention  to  tall 
tree  in  .background,  note  fence,  evergreen  tree,  and  hill 

back  of  tall  tree.     Can  vou  see  the  nest  in  the 

[Pages  7-8J  n  o  i 

tall  tree  ?  Why  not  ?  Turn  to  picture  on 
page  5.  Here  we  see  the  tall  tree  nearer  to  us.  Is  it  the 
same  tall  tree  we  saw  on  page  3  ?  How  do  you  know  ? 
Note  again  fence,  evergreen  tree,  and  hill  back  of  tall 
tree — also  the  general  shape  of  the  tall  tree.  Now  can 
you  see  the  nest  ?     See  what  the  parents  are  doing  ? 

6.  Reading^  from  Chart  and  First  Reader.  Chart,  pages  22- 
24 ;  First  Reader,  pages  3-5. 

7.  Seat  work.     See  Chapter  XII,  7. 

8.  Phonics.  Pupils  who  have  worked  through  the  Primer 
have  now  had  all  the  consonants  and  their  sounds  that  are 

to  be  learned  by  special  drill,  except  ch,  k,  qu, 
and  V.    Those  who  have  reached  this  point  with- 
out the  use  of  the  Primer  have  still  to  learn,  in  addition  to 
the  preceding,  k,  iv,  y,  sh,  tli,  and  loh. 

The  consonants  still  remainins;  to  be  learned  should  be 
taken  up  in  connection  with  the  first  words  in  which  they 
occur  as  initial  consonants,  whether  these  words  are  met 
in  the  regular  reading  or  in  the  word  series.  (See  Chapter 
XXIII.) 


THE   METHOD  APPLIED  163 

The  first  series  contains  words  liaving  h,  w,  y,  sh,  and 
th  as  initial  consonants ;  the  second  series  has  a  word  be- 
ginning with  irJi  ;  the  fourtli  series,  a  word  beghming  with 
V  ;  and  the  eleventh  series,  words  beginning  with  ch,  k,  and 
qii.  Words  beginning  with  these  initial  consonants  are  also 
nsed  in  the  text  of  the  First  Reader  at  the  time  or  soon  after 
the  above  series  are  taken  up. 

The  drill  with  the  consonant  cards  and  other  forms  of 
drill  already  suggested  (see  Chapter  X,  10)  should  be  kept 
up  until  pupils  recognize  accurately  and  instantaneously 
the  sound  of  any  consonant,  no  matter  where  it  is  seen. 
Pupils  should  become  accustomed,  by  constant  practice,  to 
applying  their  knowledge  of  consonant  sounds  in  their 
efforts  to  master  new  words. 

Work  with  the  word  series  will  begin  when  page  13,  of 
the  First  Reader,  is  reached.  Preparation  for  this  work 
should  be  made  by  taking  up  or  continuing  the  exercise 
suggested  in  Chapter  XVII,  7. 


CHAPTER  XIX 

THE  FIRST  READER,  PAGES  6-10  ;  THE  CHART, 
PAGES  25-27 

Rhyme  XIX 

Fly,  little  birds, 

To  the  place  you  love  best, 

To  the  tall  tree 

And  your  dear  little  nest. 

place  dear  best  love  you 

(Chart,  p.  25;  First  Reader,  p.  6.) 

1.  Tell  the  story,  introducing  the  rhyme. 

The  Captured  Robins 

It  was  evening.  The  squirrels  had  gone  to  their  beds. 
The  birds  had  stopped  chattering  in  the  trees.  All  was 
quiet  but  for  some  peeping  that  came  from  the 
robins'  nest  in  the  tall  tree  by  the  porch. 

"  Peep  !  peep !  peep  !    Peep !  peep !  peep !  " 

You  never  heard  such  a  peeping  in  all  your  life ! 

"  Just  listen  to  those  little  birds,"  said  James.  "  I 
think  they  are  going  to  stay  awake  all  night." 

"  What  can  be  the  matter  with  them  ?  "  asked  Mother. 
"  It  is  surely  time  all  little  birds  and  boys  were  asleep." 

"  I  did  not  hear  Father  Robin  sing  his  good  night  song," 

104 


THE  METHOD  APPLIED  165 

said  James.  ^'Did  your  fatlier  forget  to  sing  you  to  sleep, 
little  birds  ?  "  he  asked,  looking  up  into  tlie  tree. 

"  Peep  !  peep  !     Peep !  peep  !  "  answered  the  little  birds. 

"  There  must  be  something  the  matter  with  them,"  said 
Mother.     "  I  never  knew^  them  to  act  so  before." 

Just  then  a  man,  carrying  a  large  cage,  walked  up  to 
the  porch. 

"Want  to  buy  two  fine  birds?"  he  asked. 

"What  kind  of  birds?"  asked  Mother. 

"Robins." 

"Where  did  3'OU  get  them?"  said  Mother. 

"  I  caught  them  in  a  net  this  morning,"  was  the 
answer. 

"You  wicked,  wicked  man,"  said  Mother.  "Don't  you 
know  you  can  be  punished  for  catching  robins  or  any  song 
birds?  Do  you  want  to  be  arrested  ?  I  think  I  shall  send 
for  a  policeman." 

This  frightened  the  man,  and  he  dropped  the  cage  on 
the  floor  of  the  j)orch  and  ran  away  as  fast  as  he  could  go. 

Mother  lifted  the  cage  and  said  to  James,  "  Come,  my 
boy,  open  the  door  of  this  cage  and  set  the  little  prisoners 
free.     They  want  to  go  home  to  their  nests,  I  know." 

James  opened  the  door  and  sang, 

"  Fly,  little  birds, 
To  the  place  you  love  best. 
To  the  tall  tree 
And  your  dear  little  nest." 

Out  came  the  frii^htened  little  birds  and  flew  to  the 


IGG  LEARNING   TO   READ 

porcli  railing.     There  they  hopped  about,  looking  around 
tliein.     Then  James  sang  once  more, 

"  Fly,  little  birds, 
To  the  place  you  love  best, 
To  the  tall  tree 
And  your  dear  little  nest." 

As  he  sang  the  birds  listened  to  the  little  bird.-;  above 
them  calling  "Peep!  peep!  peep!" 

With  soft  little  cries,  they  flew  straight  to  the  nest  in 
the  tree  top. 

What  a  chattering  !  What  a  peeping  m  that  nest  —  first 
the  little  birds,  then  the  old  birds,  and  then  the  babies 
again  ! 

"  The  little  birds  are  telling  their  mother  and  father 
how  they  have  missed  them ;  how  afraid  they  were  alone 
in  the  dark ;  and  how  glad  they  are  to  see  them  home 
again,"  said  James. 

"Yes,"  answered  Mother,  "and  the  father  and  mother 
birds  are  telling  their  babies  how  glad  they  are  to  see  them 
again.  Come,  James,  it  is  time  my  little  boy  was  in  bed, 
too." 

2.  Teach  the  rhyme.     See  Cbapter  III,  2. 

3.  Drill  on  new  words.     See  Chapter  T,  Sec.  6. 

4.  Picture  study.  (First  Reader,  page  G.)  What  are 
the  children  doing?     Where  are  they  having  their  pai'ty? 

What  are  the  little  birds  looking  for?     Will  the 

children  o-ive  them  some  crumbs  ?     Then  what 

will  they  say  to  the  little  birds?     (Answer  in  words  of 


THE   METHOD  APPLIED  167 

rhyme.)  Will  the  little  birds  carry  the  crumbs  to  the 
nest?  What  will  they  do  with  them?  (Pages  7  and  8.) 
What  is  the  little  boy  saying  to  the  birds?  (Rhyme.) 
(Page  9.)  What  are  the  bh'ds  doing?  What  have  they 
found  to  eat?  What  have  two  of  them  brought  in  which 
to  carry  home  the  dinner?  To  whom  will  they  carr^^  it? 
The  picture  helps  the  pupil  to  get  new  words,  as  that  on 
page  9.  What  are  the  birds  doing?  They  are  flying. 
They  is  a  hard  word  to  teach  as  a  mere  sight  word,  but 
when  tliey  means  the  four  little  birds  in  the  picture,  it  is 
soon  learned.  ArenndfJi/ing,  having  been  used  naturally 
by  the  child  in  a  sentence,  are  easily  grasped. 

5.  Reading  from  Chart  and  First  Reader.  Chart,  pages 
25-27;  First  Reader,  pages  6-10.  See  Chapter  I,  Sec.  12, 
11-15. 

6.  Seat  work.  See  Chapter  XIII,  7 ;  also  Chapter  II, 
Sec.  7. 


CHAPTER  XX 

THE  FIRST  READER,   PAGES  11-14 

Rhyme  XX 

Robin,  Robin  Redbreast, 
Singing  on  the  bough, 
Come  and  get  your  breakfast, 
I  will  feed  you  now. 

bough  Robin  breakfast  will 

get  Redbreast  feed 

(First  Reader,  p.  11.) 

1.   Tell  the  story,  introducing  the  rhyme. 

RoBix  Redbreast's  Breakfast 

One   morning  Robin  Redbreast  flew  from  his  nest  to 

look  for  some  breakfast  for   himself  and  his  little  birds. 

He  looked  all   over  the   garden  and  all  over 

the  field,  but  either  Robin  had  bad  luck  that 

morning,  or  the  worms  had  good  luck,  for  not  a  single 

worm  could  he  find. 

Now  such  luck  as  Robin  had  would  be  enough  to  make 
some  people  fuss  and  others  cry,  but  Robin  only  flew  to 
the  tip-top  bough  of  the  tall  tree  and  sang  and  sang, 
'^  Cheer-up,  cheer-up  !  Cheer-up,  cheer-up  !  Cheer-up, 
cheer-up ! " 

168 


THE   METHOD  APPLIED  1G9 

Gray  Greedy  Pussy  heard  Robin  and  came  creeping 
under  the  tree.  In  her  mouth  she  carried  a  little  piece 
of  bread.     Looking  up  at  Robin,  she  said  in  her  softest 

voice, 

"  Robin,  Robin  Redbreast, 
Singing  on  the  bough, 
Come  and  get  your  breakfast, 
I  will  feed  you  now." 

But  Robin  knew  what  Pussy  wanted,  so  he  said,  "  No, 
no.  Gray  Greedy  Pussy,  no,  no.  I  saw  you  kill  a  little 
mouse  j^esterday,  but  you  shall  not  kill  me." 

Then  Gray  Greedy  Pnssy  crept  away. 

Next,  Mr.  Sly  Fox  heard  Robin's  song  and  came  sneak- 
ing nnder  the  tree.  He  held  np  a  little  piece  of  meat  that 
he  had  stolen  and  said, 

"  Robin,  Robin  Redbreast, 
Singing  on  the  bough, 
Come  and  get  your  breakfast, 
I  will  feed  you  now." 

But  Robin  said,  "  No,  no,  Mr.  Sly  Fox,  I  saw  you  kill  a 
little  chicken  yesterday,  but  you  shall  not  get  me." 

And  Mr.  Sly  Fox  had  to  trot  off  to  the  woods  without 
any  robin  for  breakfast. 

Soon  little  Mary  heard  Robin  singing.  Quickly  she 
filled  a  bowl  with  crumbs  and  ran  to  the  tall  tree. 
Holding  up  her  bowl  she  said, 

"  Robin,  Robin  Redbreast, 
Singing  on  the  bough. 


170  LEARNING  TO  READ 

Come  and  get  your  breakfast, 
I  will  feed  you  now." 

Then  she  placed  the  bowl  under  the  tree  and  ran  back  to 
the  house.  Robin  sang,  "  Thank  you  !  Thank  you  !  " 
until  Mary  was  out  of  sight ;  then  down  he  flew  and 
found  all  the  breakfast  he  and  his  babies  could  eat. 

2.  Teach  the  rhyme. 

3.  Dramatize  the  story. 

Characters  :  Robin,  Gray  Greedy  Pussy,  Mr.  Sly  Fox, 
and  Mary.     A    chair    may  represent  the   tall 

[Pages  10-13]  ^  •;,  •       , 

tree.     Follow  the  events  m  the  story. 

4.  Drill  on  new  words. 

5.  Picture  study.  (First  Reader,  page  11.)  Where  is 
Robin?  What  is  he  singing?  What  is  the  little  girl's 
name  ?  What  is  she  saying  ?  (Rhyme.)  What  is  in  the 
bowl  ? 

6.  Reading  from  the  First  Reader.  Pages  11-14.  See  Chap- 
ter I,  Sec.  13,  1-5. 

7.  Phonics.  Series  1,  on  the  Phonic  Chart.  See  Chap- 
ter XXIII;  Chapter  I,  Sec.  7,  2-4,  8-13,  and  Sec.  9,  1-7. 


CHAPTER  XXI 

THE  FIRST  READER,   PAGE  15  TO  THE  END 

1.  Teaching  the  rhymes.  The  rhymes  on  pages  15,  17, 
25,  28,  33,  37,  45,  and  51  are  to  be  committed  to 
memory  as  they  are  reached  and  used  for  refer- 

.  .  .  [Pages  4-7] 

ence  in  reading  the  stories.     Usually  no  story 
by  the  teacher  will  be  needed  to  introduce  these  rhymes; 
after  the  experience  they  have  already  had,  children  will 
memorize  them  quickly. 

2.  Dramatizing.  The  dramatizing  should  be  continued 
in   con?iection   with    the   rhymes   and    readino; 

■^  ^     [Pages  8-13] 

lessons.     Only  those  stories  and    rhymes  well 
adapted    to    this    purpose    should    be    dramatized 
The  rhyme  on  page  28  — 

"  Come,  little  leaves,"  said  the  wind  one  day, 
"  Come  over  the  meadows  with  me  and  play," 

with   the  accompanying   picture,  suggests  a  very  pretty 
little  play. 

The  pupils  should  study  the  picture  —  note  ho\v  lightly 
the  Wind  skims  over  the  ground,  how  he  beckons  with  liis 
finger,  the  pipes  upon  which  he  blows;  let  them  note  also 
the  leaves,  \vhirliug  and  dancing  about  him,  how  glad 
they  seem. 

171 


172  LEARNING   TO  READ 

The  child  who  personates  Wind  may  carry  pipes  made 
of  two  new  lead  pencils.  He  flits  through  the  aisles, 
beckoning  to  different  children  and  blowing  on  his  pipes, 
while  the  class  recites  the  rhyme.  The  children  thus 
called  rise  from  their  seats  and  follow  the  Wind,  whirling 
as  they  go.  The  children  at  the  seats,  or  the  teacher, 
may  continue  the  rhyme, 

"  Dancing  and  whirling,  the  little  leaves  went, 
Winter  had  called  them  and  they  were  content ; 
Soon  fast  asleep  in  their  earthy  beds, 
The  snow  laid  a  coverlet  over  their  heads." 

As  the  last  two  lines  are  recited  the  children  who  are 
leaves  drop  softly  to  the  floor  and  another  child  —  the 
snow  —  goes  to  each  one  and  makes  believe  cover  him 
with  snow  flakes. 

The  rhyme  on  page  33  is  also  very  easily  dramatized. 
Several  children,  the  birds,  are  flying  around.  The  wind 
flies  over  to  them  and  after  blowing  on  his  pipes, 
"  Oo-oo-oo,"    to    attract   their  attention,  points    to  them 

and  says, 

"  Come,  little  birds, 
Stop  your  play, 
Snow  is  coming  down, 
You  must  hide  away." 

As  soon  as  the  little  birds  hear  this,  they  fly  at  once  far 
away  to  the  warm  southland  —  their  desks. 

The  poem  on  page  101,  '•  The  Little  Plant,"  may  be 
dramatized  as  follows :       A  child  —  the  little  plant  —  is 


THE  METHOD  APPLIED  173 

curled  up  on  the  floor  "  fast  asleep."  Another  child  — 
the  sunshme  —  touches  the  little  plant  gently  and  says, 
"  Wake  !  and  creep  to  the  light."  Then  several  children 
—  the  raindrops  —  gather  around  her  and  touch  her  softly, 
softly  —  the  patter  of  the  rain  —  and  say,  "  Wake  !  wake  I 
wake!"  The  little  plant  stirs,  opens  her  eyes,  stretches, 
sits  up,  then  stands  erect,  and  says,  "  How  wonderful  the 
outside  world  is !" 

The  selection  on  pages  103-104  should  be  read  as  a 
dialogue  by  two  children.  One  asks  the  question  and  the 
other  —  a  butterfly  —  answers. 

The  poem,  ''  The  Dandelion,"  on  page  118,  is  to  be  read 
in  the  same  way.  If  the  teacher  wish,  she  may  have  four 
children  read  it  as  follows  :  — 

First  Child 

0  dandelion,  3'^ello\v  as  gold, 
What  do  you  do  all  day  ? 

Dandelion 

1  just  wait  here  in  the  tall  green  grass 
Till  the  children  come  to  play. 

Second  Child 

0  dandelion,  yellow  as  gold, 
What  do  you  do  all  night  ? 

Dandelion 

1  wait  and  wait  till  tlie  cool  dews  fall 
And  my  hair  grows  long  and  white. 


174  LEARNING   TO   READ 

Third  Chud 
And  what  do  you  do  when  your  hair  is  white 
And  the  children  come  to  play  ? 

Dandelion 
They  take  me  up  in  their  dimpled  hands 
And  blow  my  hair  away. 

The  children  should  also  dramatize  some  of  the  stories 
they  read  from  the  book.  This  work  should  be  largely 
the  children's  own  efforts.  The  work  of  the  teacher  is 
simply  to  suggest  or  guide  the  children. 

The  story  on  page  70  — "  Rose,  Daisy,  and  L'ily  "  —  is  an 
easy  one  with  which  to  begin.  Three  children  represent- 
ing Rose,  Daisy,  and  Lily  stand  in  front  of  the  room. 
The  children  at  their  seats  are  the  other  flowers  OTOwins!: 
all  around  them.  Rose,  Daisy,  and  Lily  carry  on  the  con- 
versation much  as  it  is  given  in  the  story. 

"The  Star,"  page  74,  may  be  dramatized  as  follows: 
A  table,  or  the  teacher's  desk,  may  represent  the  bank  of 
clouds  over  which  little  star  looks  down  on  the  flowers  — 
several  children  sitting  on  the  floor.  A  child  for  the  star 
and  another  for  Mother  Moon  carry  on  the  conversation 
of  the  story.  As  little  star  says,  "  I  will,  I  will.  Good-by, 
good-by,"  she  quietly  joins  the  flowers  in  the  meadow. 

''  The  Dandelion's  Friends,"  on  page  77,  is  a  continua- 
tion of  the  star  story  and  may  be  dramatized  with  it. 

"The  Caterpillar,"  page  114,  is  simply  dramatized  by, 
two  children  —  the  Caterpillar  and  the  Lily  —  followhig 
the  incidents  and  using  the  conversation  of  the  story. 


THE   METHOD   APPLIED  175 

3.  Picture  study.  Every  picture  is  in  perfect  harmony 
with  tlie  story  or  incident  which  it  ilkistrates. 

.  [Pages  7-8] 

Every  picture  adds  thought  and  interest  to  the 

text,  and    should  be  studied    carefully.     See  suggestions 

for  picture  studies  in  previous  chapters. 

4.  Phonics.  Pupils  must  be  made  to  depend  more  and 
more  npon  their  growing  knowledge  of  phonics  [Pages  i6  37; 
to  help  them  in  the  mastery  of  new  words,  pp-  ^^-esj 
As  their  dependence  on  phonics  increases,  their  depend- 
ence on  sight  words  learned  in  rhymes  diminishes. 
Even  wdiile  the  rhymes  continue  in  nse,  pupils  should  be 
applying  such  knowledge  of  phonics  as  they  have  to  the 
learning  of  new  words. 

The  study  of  the  word  series  from  the  Phonic  Chart, 
begun  in  the  last  chapter  (see  Chapter  XX,  7),  will  be 
kept  up  constantly.  The  order  of  taking  up  the  series 
is  indicated  in  Chapter  XXIII. 

The  vocabulary,  arranged  alphabetically  at  the  end  of 
the  First  Reader,  may  profitably  be  used  for  drill  in  the 
sounds  of  certain  combinations  of  consonants  which  occur 
frequently.  Looking  under  h  in  that  vocabulary,  we  find 
six  words  beginning  with  hi,  nine  beginning  with  hr; 
under  c,  there  are  nine  beginning  with  d,  and  seven  be- 
ginning with  cv;  under  d,  there  are  five  beginning  with 
dr,  and  so  on.  The  drill  should  consist  in  a  careful  and 
distinct  pronunciation  of  these  words,  the  child's  atten- 
tion being  directed  to  the  combination  of  initial  conso- 
nants as  he  pronounces  them.     Practice  should  then    l)e 


176  LEARNING  TO  READ 

given  in  pronouncing  other  words  containing  the  same 
combinations  of  consonants.  Such  words  may  be  both 
supphed  by  the  teacher  and  found  by  the  pupil  in  his 
reading  and  in  the  wo.d  series. 

5.  Reading.     Let  the  teacher  not  forget  for  a  moment 

that  readinjj;  is  thinkinar  under  direction ;  that 

[Pag33  38-56]  °  ?  •  ^^     ,1  1. 

every  story  or  poem  is  a  series  oi  thoughts 
growing  into  one  harmonious  whole ;  that  reading  the 
story  or  poem  consists  primarily  in  thinking  those 
thoughts,  incidentally  in  giving  them  appropriate  expres- 
sion, using  the  words  of  tlie  printed  page. 

The  stories  read  should  be  talked  over  and  retold, 
briefly  or  at  length,  by  the  children. 

6.  Seat  work.  Children  learn  to  read  by  reading  —  to 
read  independently  by  reading  independently.  The  best 
seat  work  in  reading  is  silent  reading  at  the  desks.  For 
this  purpose  pupils  should  have  access  to  several  easy  and 
interesting  books.  Every  first-grade  room  should  be  pro- 
vided with  one  copy  each  of  a  large  number  of  different 

Primers  and  First  Readers,  or  books  of  similar 
grade,  in  addition  to  those  to  be  read  in  class. 
These  books  are  to  be  read  silently  and  independently  by 
the  children  at  their  seats.  But  they  should  be  given  op- 
portunity, as  often  as  possible,  to  read  aloud  to  the  rest 
of  the  class  from  the  books  thus  read  at  the  seats.  They 
should  also  be  trained  to  tell  stories  they  have  read. 


CHAPTER  XXII 

THE  SECOND  AND  THIRD  READERS 

1.  Phonics.  With  the  completion  of  the  First  Reader 
the  first  fifty-seven  series  of  words  have  been  studied  on 
the  Phonic  Chart.  The  order  in  which  the  remaining 
series  may  best  be  taken  up  is  indicated  in  Chapter 
XXIII.  These  series  are  not  to  be  taken  up  once,  how- 
ever, and  then  dropped.  They  must  be  constantly  re- 
viewed, even  from  the  beginning  of  the  Chart.  It  is  often 
well  to  review  in  succession  several  series  in  which  occur 
the  same  vowel  and  vowel  sound,  as  series,  35,  67,  149, 
150,  157  ;  then  the  pupils'  grasp  of  that  vowel  in  con- 
stantly changing  consonant  combinations  may  be  tested 
with  series  175.  The  index  on  the  first  page  of  tlie  Chart 
enables  the  teacher  to  find  at  once  all  the  series  based  on 
the  same  vowel  sound,  also  the  corresponding  test  series. 

The  study  of  these  phonetic  series  constitutes  the  foun- 
dation work  which  goes  along  with  the  reading  of  the 
Second  and  Third  Readers,  the  text  of  which  is  especially 
adapted  to  the  application  of  the  phonetic  principles  em- 
bodied in  the  series.  These  series  are  studied,  not  for 
their  own  sake,  but  for  the  sake  of  developing  in  the  pupil 
power  to  master  the  sounds  of  varying  combinations  of 
vowels  and  consonants  as  he  meets  these  combinations  in 

177 


178  LEARNING  TO   READ 

his  reading.  To  accomplisli  this,  the  pupil  must  be  re- 
quired to  apply  constantly  the  knowledge  of  these  combi- 
nations of  letters  and  their  sounds  which  he  has  learned 
from  the  chart.  This  will  necessitate  constant  reference 
to  the  chart.  Suppose,  for  instance,  a  pupil  is  not  able  at 
once  to  pronounce  a  word  which  belongs  to  a  series  already 
studied,  as  the  word  scorn,  which  is  used  for  the  first 
time  in  the  second  lesson  of  the  Second  Reader.  He 
should  not  be  told  the  word,  but  should  be  referred  to 
series  39  on  the  chart  and  required  to  find  out  tlie  pro- 
nunciation for  himself.  It  may  be  found  advisable  to  run 
through  in  review  the  whole  -orn  series. 

ThrouLi-liout  the  Second  Reader  there  are  introduced 
words  belonging  to  series  already  studied  which  are  not 
listed  as  new  words  at  the  beij-inning!;  of  the  lesson, 
although  they  have  never  before  been  used  in  the  text. 
These  words  afford  the  pupil  an  excellent  opportunity  to 
apply  his  knowledge  of  phonics.  While  studying  a  new 
lesson,  and  in  his  individual  supplementary  reading,  the 
pupil  should  have  free  access  to  the  Cliart,  and  should  be 
trained  and  encouraged  to  use  it  whenever  necessary. 

A  fundamental  rule  for  the  teacher  is  never  to  tell  a 
child  a  word  whose  pronunciation  he  is  capable  of  making 
out  for  himself.  And  by  the  time  the  Second  Reader  is 
reached  most  children  will  have  developed  suflicient 
knowledge  of  phonics  so  that  they  should  be  encouraged 
to  try  the  pronunciation  of  any  phonetic  word,  even 
though  they  have  never  studied   the  series  to  which  it 


THE   METHOD   APPLIED  179 

belongcs.  Even  words  that  belonsr  to  no  series,  irreg-ular 
words,  the  pupil  should  be  trained  to  analjze,  to  find  out 
the  parts  that  are  familiar,  to  sound  it  part  by  part,  and  so 
to  pronounce  it.  Take,  for  example,  the  word  Lainbikin. 
The  pupil  knows  the  two  little  words  am  and  'ui ;  he  also 
knows  the  consonant  sounds.  By  analyzing  and  applying 
this  knowledge  he  should  be  able  to  get  the  whole  word. 
He  may  sound  the  h  ;  but,  usually,  after  a  first  sounding, 
he  will  drop  it  of  his  own  accord.  If  he  does  not,  he  may 
be  told  that  h  is  silent ;  but,  at  most,  this  is  all  he  should 
be  told. 

If  pupils'  knowledo-e  of  the  consonant  sounds 

^     ^  ^  .  .  .  [Pages  23-25] 

IS  not  perfect,  they  should  be  given  drill  with 
the  consonant  cards. 

Teachers  who  first  take  up  this  method  with  the  Second 
Reader  should  familiarize  themselves  thoroughly  with  the 
plan  and  purpose  of  teaching  phonics,  by  studying  care- 
fully the  following :  Chapter  I,  6-10,  and  Chapter  II,  4. 

2.  Dramatizing.  The  stories  in  the  Second  and  Third 
Readers  are  especially  well  adapted  for  dramatization ; 
they  abound  in  action,  they  contain  much  conversation. 
The  action  interpreted  and  the  conversation  together  com- 
plete the  story.  The  dramatizing  of  these  stories  calls  for 
few  accessories  in  the  way  of  stage  settings.  Dramatizing 
should  be  left  more  and  more  in  the  hands  of  the  pupils, 
the  teacher  suo:Q;estinoj  and  cruidins:. 

To  illustrate  one  method  of  dramatizing  a  storj^  let  us 
take  the  storj'  of  "  Bilh'  Biuks,"  page  117,  of  the  Second 


180  LEARNING  TO  READ 

Reader.  After  the  pupils  have  read  the  story  as  it  is  given 
in  the  book,  let  them  read  it  again  in  dialogue  form.  The 
same  children  keep  the  parts  of  the  different  characters  all 
the  way  through  the  story.  Each  reads  just  what  the  char- 
acter he  represents  says,  and  reads  it  exactly  as  he  thinks 
the  character  in  the  story  would  say  it.     Thus  — 

Pony.  —  Where  are  you  going,  Billy  Binks? 
Billy  Blnks.  —  I  am  going  to  seek  my  fortune. 
Pony, — May  I  go,  too?  etc. 

After  the  story  has  been  read  through  thus  —  if  the  pupils 
really  enter  into  the  spirit  of  the  story,  the  expression  will 
be  perfect  —  the  children  representing  the  different  animals 
take  their  places  at  intervals  around  the  room.  Billy  Binks, 
walking  around  the  room,  meets  each  in  turn,  converses 
with  him,  and  is  followed  by  him  as  he  continues  on  his 
way  to  seek  his  fortune.  A  child  in  a  distant  corner  repre- 
sents the  hob-goblin.  Billy  Binks  and  the  animals  rush 
on  the  hob-goblin,  making  all  the  noise  they  can.  Billy 
yells,  the  horse  neighs,  the  cow  moos,  etc.  Thus  they 
frighten  the  hob-goblin  away  by  their  noise,  but  without 
doing  all  the  damage  described  in  the  story. 

Whenever  possible  the  stories  should  be  read  in  dialogue 
form  and  then  dramatized.  The  dramatization  should  be 
spontaneous,  and  should  follow  the  first  reading  of  the  story. 
After  the  experience  pupils  have  already  had  in  dramatiz- 
ing, they  will  be  able  to  dramatize  a  story  at  once.  Such 
dramatization  is  only  a  more   complete  form  of  reading. 


THE  METHOD   APPLIED  181 

No  practice,  for  the  sake  of  a  finished  product,  is  desired. 
This  exercise  is  not  for  the  sake  of  the  drama,  but  of 
the  pupils.  After  a  story  has  been  dramatized,  it  should 
be  re-read.  The  expression  will  be  found  to  have 
improved  nuich  on  account  of  the  dramatization.  The 
effects  of  dramatization  will  be  found  to  extend  beyond 
the  selections  dramatized,  even  to  the  reading  of  the 
poetry. 

The  poems  in  these  books  have  been  carefully  selected 
for  the  opportunities  they  afford  of  teaching  good  expres- 
sion in  reading  poetry.  They  are  to  be  studied  and  read 
again  and  again.  If  pupils  are  well  taught,  they  thoroughly 
enjoy  reading  such  poems  and  will  ask  to  read  them  over 
and  over,  instead  of  turning  the  leaves  rapidly  when  they 
see  a  page  of  verses. 

Second  and  third  grade  teachers  should  study  thoroughly 
Chapter  I,  4,  to  become  familiar  with  the  general  plan 
and  purpose  of  dramatization ;  they  should  also  read  the 
specific  directions  for  dramatizing  certain  stories,  as  given 
in  Chapters  III-XXT. 

3.  Reproduction  of  stories.  Even  after  these  stories  have 
been  studied,  dramatized,  and  read  they  are  not  to  be  for- 
gotten. They  have  been  collected  from  the  world's  store 
of  folk  lore  and  are  well  worth  remembering.  They  are 
the  best  possible  kind  of  stories  for  reproduction  work  in 
language,  both  oral  and  written.  The  language  is  that 
of  the  ordinary  child's  vocabulary ;  the  sentences  are 
generally  short  and  simple ;    many  of  the  stories  contain 


Ig2  LEAKNiXG   TO   HEAD 

frequent  repetitions  of  words,  expressions,  and  sentences; 
the  subject-matter  is  interesting  to  children. 

4.  Reading  and  expression.     See  Cliapter  I,  SeciS.  12  and  13, 

5.  Seat  work.  In  addition  to  the  regular  reading  books, 
each  class  should  be  provided  with  a  number  of  different 
books  for  silent  reading  at  the  desks.  These  books  should 
of  course  contain  stories  that  appeal  to  the  children's 
interests.  The  reading  sliould  be  easy,  within  the  pupils' 
power  to  grasp  the  thought  as  well  as  their  ability  to  read 
the  words.  These  books  may  be  single  copies  of  second 
or  third  year  books,  or  they  may  be  sets  carefully  selected 
by  the  teacher  and  sent  from  the  public  library. 

From  time  to  time  a  pupil  should  be  allowed  to  read 
aloud  to  the  class  from  the  book  read  at  the  seat.  Some- 
times a  pupil  may  be  asked  to  tell  the  story  he  has  read. 
This  gives  the  teacher  an  opportunity  to  judge  whether 
the  child  gets  the  thought  as  he  reads,  whether  he  is 
reading  intelligently  or  not. 

Then,  too,  by  noting  just  what  most  interests  each  indi- 
vidual pupil,  what  kind  of  a  story  pleases  him,  which  books 
he  tries  to  get  for  his  silent  reading,  the  teacher  may  by  a 
suggestion  or  guiding  word  direct  the  pupil's  independent 
readino;  along  the  best  lines. 

6.  Pictures.  All  pictures  illustrate  and  help  to  interpret 
the  text ;  they  should  be  studied  carefully.  See  Chapter 
I,  Sec.  3  ;  also  detailed  suggestions  for  picture  study  as 
given  in  Chapters  III  to  XIX. 

7.  Spelling.     See  Chapter  II,  Sec.  4,  9-13. 


CHAPTER  XXIII 

THE  PHONIC  CHART 

The  Phonic  Chart  should  be  in  constant  use  for  two 
years  or  longer.  Work  with  it  should  begin  soon  after 
taking  np  the  First  Reader.  The  series  are  best  taken 
np  in  order,  each  one  at  a  certain  point  in  the  [pages  16-34; 
reading  of  the  First  and  Second  Readers,  as  pp- 62-68] 
indicated  below.  Taken  in  this  order  it  will  be  found 
that  the  first  word  or  words  of  the  series  occur  in  the  les- 
son being  read  from  the  book.  Usually,  the  first  word  of 
the  series  has  been  previously  learned  as  a  sight  word  and 
is  now  being  used  to  aid  the  child  in  pronouncing  a  new 
word  of  the  same  series.  For  instance,  it  is  directed  below 
that  series  10,  II,  and  12  be  taken  when  page  38  of  the 
First  Reader  is  reached.  The  first  words  of  these  series 
are  respectively,  get,  let ;  iviU,  till ;  and  sing,  icing.  Turn- 
ing to  page  38  of  the  First  Reader,  we  find  that  get,  loill, 
and  sing,  sight  words  already  learned,  are  used  as  type 
words  to  suggest  the  pronunciation  respectively  of  let,  till, 
and  iving.  In  teaching  each  of  these  new  words  in  prepa- 
ration for  the  lesson  which  follows,  the  whole  series  of 
words  to  which  the  new  word  belonsrs  is  to  be  tausjlit. 

Series  already  taught  should   be    reviewed  constantly. 
Pupils  must  form   the  habit  of  applying  the  knowledge 

183 


184  LEARNING  TO  READ 

of  vowel  sounds  thus  learned  whenever  there  is  oppor- 
tunity. If  a  pupil  does  not  recognize  at  once  -et,  -iU, 
•ing,  or  any  other  type  combination  which  he  has  had,  he 
should  not  be  told,  but  should  be  referred  to  tlie  series 
of  which  that  combination  forms  the  base,  and  the  series 
should  be  reviewed.  Just  as,  in  the  ...^ginning  of  their 
work,  pupils  had  to  refer  to  the  rhymes  for  words  not 
recognized,  so  now  they  must  refer  to  the  series  for  vowel 
combinations  not  recognized. 

It  is  profitable  frequently  to  go  over  in  succession  sev- 
eral series  which  contain  the  same  vowel  or  vowels  with 
the  same  vowel  sound.  All  the  series  containing  the  same 
vowel  and  vowel  sound  are  readily  found  from  the  index 
on  the  first  page  of  the  Chart. 

Much  variety  should  be  introduced  into  the  phonic 
drills.  As  soon  as  pupils  have  gained  some  power  in  the 
pronunciation  of  series,  sounding  and  combining  readily 
the  initial  consonant  or  consonants  with  the  constant 
vowel  combination,  they  may  take  more  difficult  exercises. 
The  teacher  ma;^  write  on  the  board  the  base  of  any  series, 
selecting  more  or  less  familiar  ones  according  to  the  power 
ot  the  pupils,  as  -at  or  -ent.  She  then  names  different  con- 
sonants, as  h,  .<?,  /,  sjj,  which  pupils  are  to  prefix  to  the 
given  base.  The  teacher  should  be  careful  to  give  only 
such  consonants  as  combine  with  the  base  to  make  real 
words.     This  exercise  is  entirely  oral. 

With  several  bases  on  the  board,  as  -ell,  -ill,  -it,  -ick,  -oat, 
etc.,  the  teacher  may  name  a  consonant  and  require  pupils 


THE   PHONIC   CHART  185 

to  prefix  it  to  as  many  of  the  bases  as  possible,  making 
real  words.  With  the  consonant  h,  the  pupil  may  give 
hell,  hill,  hit,  and  hoat;  with  k,  kill  ami  kick.  If  pnpils  are 
made  thoughtful  in  this  exercise,  it  may  prove  of  much 
value  in  enlarging  their  vocabulary  and  in  teaching  them 
to  spell,  as  well  as  in  drilling  them  in  sounds  and  their 
combinations.  They  sliould  not  be  allowed  thonghtlessly 
to  combine  sounds  which  make  no  word ;  they  should  be 
constantly  required  to  tell  the  meaning  of  the  words  they 
make  or  to  use  them  in  sentences. 

It  is  safer  to  make  this  an  oral  exercise,  as  many  words 
will  be  made  quite  correctly  as  to  sound  but  incorrect  in 
spelling,  if  vrritten.  For  instance,  in  the  above  illustra- 
tion, koat  might  be  given.  In  this  case,  let  the  teacher 
say,  "  No,  coat  is  not  spelled  with  a  k.  What  other  letter 
has  the  same  sound?"  If  the  pupils  are  as  familiar  with 
the  consonants  and  their  sounds  as  they  should  be  at  this 
time,  they  will  be  able  to  answer  at  once.  Then  let  the 
teacher  require  them  to  spell  coat  correctly. 

Many  simpler  exercises  which  have  been  begun  before 
taking  up  regular  drills  with  the  series  should  still  be  kept 
up.  Some  of  the  best  of  them  are  the  following  :  (1)  The 
teacher  sounds  a  letter  or  a  combination  of  letters ;  the 
pupils  name  the  letter  or  letters.  (2)  The  teacher  names 
a  letter  or  combination  of  letters;  pupils  give  sound. 
(3)  The  teacher  spells  words  by  giving  the  sounds  of  the 
letters  in  order ;  the  pupils  pronounce.  (4)  The  teacher 
spells  words  by  naming  the  letters ;  the  pupils  pronounce. 


186  LEARNING   TO   READ 

(5)  The  teacher  pronounces  words  and  the  pupils  spell 
them,  both  by  sounding  and  by  naming  the  letters.  Thi'^ 
exercise  should  be  written  as  well  as  oral,  just  as  soon  as 
the  pupils  are  able  to  write. 

These  spelling  exercises  are  of  the  greatest  advantage  in 
perfecting  the  pupil's  command  of  sounds  and  of  letters 
representing  sounds.  They  are  an  aid  to  reading  and 
spelling  alike.  They  must  not  be  done  carelessly  or  me- 
chanically either  by  pupil  or  teacher,  but  always  thought- 
fully and  intelligently.  The  pupil  to  whom  a  word  is  first 
given  must  spell  it.  He  must  be  made  to  feel  that  the 
word  is  his,  that  he  alone  is  responsible  for  the  correct  spell- 
ing of  it,  just  as  in  reading  he  is  made  to  feel  that  he  must 
make  out  every  word  in  the  selection  which  he  is  reading. 
As  in  reading,  the  teacher  may  give  such  assistance  as  will 
help  the  child  to  help  himself ;  as,  for  instance,  she  may 
suo-crest  a  more  familiar  word  in  the  same  series,  or  she 
may  help  him  to  fix  his  attention  on  each  sound  of  the 
[^Pag3  36 ;4;  word  in  order.  The  common  practice  of  letting 
pp.  37;  5]  ^  child  stand  dumb  and  helpless  for  a  minute,  or 
of  allowino;  him  to  make  one  or  two  vag:ue  and  misdirected 
efforts  at  the  spelling  of  a  word,  and  then  passing  it  on  to 
the  "  next "  or  to  a  volunteer,  is  not  teaching  to  spell ;  it 
is  merely  finding  out  who  can  spell. 

There  are  two  hundred  series  in  all.  The  time  for  tak- 
ing up  each  of  the  first  1G7  only  is  indicated  below.  Se- 
ries 168  to  200  are  special  test  series.  All  the  words  of 
each  of  these  series  contain  the  same  vowel  and  vowel 


THE    PIIOXIC   CHART 


187 


sound,  but  the  consonants  which  follow,  as  well  as  those 
which  precede  the  vowel,  vary.  These  series  are  used  to 
advantage  in  testing  the  pupil's  j)ower  to  recognize  vowels 
and  consonant  sounds  in  constantly  changing  combina- 
tions. The  use  of  these  test  series  is  not  to  be  deferred 
until  all  the  preceding  series  have  been  taken  up.  One 
test  series,  it  will  be  observed,  is  devoted  to  each  of  the 
principal  vowel  sounds  which  have  occurred  in  the  regular 
series.  After  taking  up  a  few  of  the  regular  series  based 
on  a  given  vowel  and  vowel  sound,  the  test  series  based 
on  the  same  vowel  should  )je  taken.  For  instance,  series 
170  is  based  on  a.  This  series  may  well  be  tried  after 
pupils  have  had  the  regular  series,  5,  13,  27,  48,  which 
are  also  based  on  a.  Work  with  series  170  should  be  re- 
viewed frequently  as  other  regular  series  in  a,  as  79,  84, 
110,  etc.,  are  reached. 

ORDER  OF  TAKING   UP  THE  SERIES 


Page 

13 
15 
17 
21 
26 
30 
33 
38 
40 


(The  First  Reader) 

Serieii 

Page 

Series 

1 

45 

18,  19 

2,3 

48 

21 

4 

52 

22 

5 

56 

20 

6 

60 

23,  24 

7,8 

67 

25,  26 

9 

69 

27-20 

10-12 

73 

30 

13-17 

74 

31,  32 

188 


LEARNING   TO   READ 


Page 

Series 

Page 

Series 

83 

33 

107 

47-49 

8i 

34 

110 

50,51 

86 

35,37 

114 

52,  53 

90 

36,  38-40 

118 

54 

95 

41,43 

120 

65 

102 

42,  44,  46 

122 

66 

105 

45 

125 

67 

(The  Second  Reader) 

Paye 

Series 

Page 

, 

Series 

3 

58 

81 

113, 

116, 

118,  119 

6 

59-61 

82 

117 

8 

62-66 

84 

120-125 

12 

67,  68,  70 

93 

126,  127 

16 

69,  71-76,  83 

94 

128-130 

26 

77-79,  81 

95 

133 

36 

80,  82,  84-87 

134, 

135, 

137,  145 

46 

89,  90,  93 

97 

131 

53 

88,  92 

100 

136 

55 

91,  95,  96 

107 

139, 

149, 

159,  165 

60 

97-99 

115 

140 

62 

100 

ir. 

138, 141 

-144,157,161 

63 

101 

133 

146 

64 

102-104 

138 

147,  154 

68 

105,  106 

145 

148 

70 

108 

151 

150- 

-152,  156 

71 

109 

160 

153, 

155, 

160,  163 

73 

107,  110 

164,  167 

77 

111,  112,  114,  115 

172 

158, 

162,  166 

THE  rHUNlC   CHART 


189 


THE   PHONIC   CHART 

Index  by  Series 


Voicels 

Serien 

a      as 

in  pi  ace 

a      " 

"    b  ack 

a      " 

"  gl  ad 

a       " 

"   111  ade 

a      " 

"  hv  ag 

a       " 

age 

a       " 

''  in  aid 

a       " 

"     s  ail 

a       '* 

"     r  ain 

a       '' 

"     f  aint 

a       " 

"     f  air 

a       " 

"    w  ake 

a       " 

"    p  ale 

a       " 

"   w  alk 

a       " 

"       all 

a      " 

"        am 

a       " 

"     c  ame 

a      " 

"    c  an 

a      " 

"        and 

a       " 

"    c  ane 

a  •   '' 

"    h  ang 

a      " 

"  th  ank 

a       " 

"  pi  ant 

E 

Vojrels 

Series 

e      as 

in   p  ea 

e       « 

"     r  each 

6       « 

"    head 

iVo.     . 

Paf/e 

161 

19 

11 

7 

11 

4 

13 

3 

167 

20 

79 

12 

145 

18 

83 

12 

30 

6 

loo 

19 

46 

8 

27 

5 

110 

15 

109 

15 

6 

o 

59 

9 

48 

8 

15 

4 

32 

6 

152 

18 

57 

9 

69 

10 

85 

13 

Vowels 

a 

il 
a 
a 
a 
a 
a 
a 

a 

a 
a 
a 
a 

a 
a 

a 

a 

a 
a 
a 
a 
a 


Xo. 

Pii(/e 

105 

15 

90 

13 

45 

7 

Series 

as  in    h 

St 

we 
h 
c 
h 


(I     u 
U      li 

a     (I 


a  K 

u  a 

ii  a 

ii  a 

u  li 

ii  li 

II  u 

li  II 

II  II 

II  II 

u  u 

II  II 

II  II 

II  II 

tl  II 

II  II 

((  a 


ap 

ar 

ar 

ard 

are 

ark 

arm 

art 

ash 

ask 

ass 

ast 

aste 

at 

atch 

ate 

atter 

ave 

aw 

awn 

ay 

aze 


Vo'iels  Series 

e  as  in     d  eer 

e  "   "      feet 

e  "   "         eiL'ht 


-A^o.    Puge 

58  9 

35  6 

116  16 

149  18 
75  11 
67  10 

150  18 
157  19 

91  13 

153  18 

95  14 

21  5 

115  16 

23  5 

165  20 

84  13 

156  19 

113  15 

34  6 

131  17 

5  2 

143  18 


JVo.     P<ige 

74    11 
25      5 

142     18 


190 


LEARNING   TO   READ 


VoicelA 

Se 

vies 

Ko. 

rage 

Voirels 

Series 

No. 

r,igc 

e       as  in 

sp  eak 

77 

11 

6 

as 

ill 

tell 

19 

4 

e       * 

I    <( 

m  eal 

122 

16 

e 

li 

11 

felt 

141 

18 

e        ' 

(     u 

dr  eaiu 

102 

14 

(5 

i( 

(( 

til  en 

73 

11 

e        ' 

C       (I 

b  ean 

147 

18 

6 

ii 

a 

■\vli  ence 

99 

14 

e       ' 

I    a 

1  eap 

103 

14 

C 

a 

11 

end 

132 

17 

e        ' 

(     u 

n  ear 

28 

5 

c 

li 

u 

w  ent 

47 

8 

e       ' 

(    a 

east 

70 

11 

(3 

u 

ii 

matt  er 

156 

19 

e        ' 

I    (I 

eat 

50 

9 

e 

ti 

a 

clev  er 

139 

17 

6        ' 

i    a 

w  eatlier 

Gl 

9 

e 

u 

ii 

ov  er 

55 

9 

e        ' 

I     u 

1  eave 

134 

17 

e 

n 

li 

f  ern 

148 

18 

6        ' 

I     u 

n  eck 

117 

16 

e 

li 

a 

dr  ess 

108 

15 

6        ' 

i    a 

bed 

oO 

6 

C 

11 

a 

n  est 

4 

o 

e        ' 

i    a 

s  ee 

1 

2 

e 

n 

ii 

get 

10 

3 

e        ' 

(    i( 

f  eed 

29 

6 

6 

a 

a 

str  etch 

164 

20 

e        ' 

i     u 

s  eek 

m 

15 

6 

n 

a 

el  ever 

339 

17 

e        ' 

i     u 

feel 

166 

20 

ew 

li 

a 

gr  ew 

8 

3 

e        ' 

i    11 

s  eeu 

53 

8 

ew 

a 

li 

ii  ew 

7 

3 

e       * 

i    a 

p  eep 

43 

7 

Vo 


<celii 


Series 

No. 

Page 

as  in 

ice 

78 

12 

ch  ick 

72 

11 

did 

37 

7 

h  ide 

22 

5 

or  ied 

86 

13 

il  ies 

88 

13 

1  ife 

125 

16 

cl  iff 

133 

17 

1  ift 

96 

14 

big 

52 

8 

n  ight 

20 

4 

Vor 


els 


as 

Series 

in        in 

No. 

49 

Page 
8 

find 

70 

11 

f  ine 

94 

14 

s  ing 

12 

3 

s  ingle 

126 

17 

th  ink 

81 

12 

t  ip 

82 

12 

th  is 

93 

14 

g  irl 

151 

18 

sk  irt 

101 

14 

tw  ist 

146 

18 

THE   rilONlC   CHART 


191 


Vowels 

Se 

vies 

^^o.     Pa  ye 

I 

as  in 

W  ill 

11      3 

I 

a     a 

h  im 

54      8 

i 

«    « 

it 

44      7 

as  111 


fly 


Voirels  Series 

1       as  in     k  ite 


h  ive 


2^.     Page 

26      5 
68    10 


O 

o 

Voicels 

S 

'riei< 

Ko. 

Paqe 

VinceU 

Seriett 

Ko. 

Page 

6 

as 

\n 

oak 

140 

]8 

6       as  in 

t  op 

38 

7 

0 

a 

li 

r  oar 

144 

18 

6       ' 

ni  oi'n 

39 

7 

6 

li 

li 

c  oat 

97 

14 

0         ' 

r  ose 

71 

11 

6 

(C 

ii 

r  ob 

89 

13 

6        ' 

m  OSS 

98 

14 

6 

ii 

a 

r  ock 

64 

10 

6        ' 

1  ost 

112 

15 

6 

a 

(( 

s  oft 

n4 

16 

6 

n  ot 

66 

10 

6 

(( 

(( 

1  og 

104 

15 

o        ' 

n  ote 

136 

17 

o 

li 

a 

w  oke 

124 

16 

oil      ' 

1  Olid 

65 

10 

o 

u 

a 

old 

3 

2 

oil      ' 

ought 

()0 

9 

o 

a 

li 

li  ole 

121 

16 

oil      ' 

f  ound 

18 

4 

o 

u 

ii 

roll 

106 

15 

oil      * 

out 

87 

13 

6 

i( 

11 

d  ome 

135 

17 

6        * 

1  ove 

92 

13 

6 

(( 

11 

p  ond 

159 

19 

0         ' 

r  ove 

107 

15 

o 

a 

11 

sh  one 

51 

8 

6        * 

over 

k)h 

9 

6 

i( 

11 

1  ong 

24 

5 

0         ' 

gr  ow 

9 

3 

oo 

li 

li 

g  ood 

123 

16 

ow     * 

h  ow 

100 

14 

00 

a 

li 

r  oof 

138 

17 

ow     ' 

owl 

128 

17 

00 

li 

11 

.1  ook 

16 

4 

0           ' 

own 

162 

20 

6o 

a 

11 

c  ool 

63 

10 

ow     ' 

d  own 

50 

8 

6o 

11 

11 

s  oon 

31 

6 

oy     ' 

boy 

158 

19 

6o 

ii 

11 

h  oot 

137 

17 

192 


LEARNING    TO   READ 


U 

u 

"owels 

faerie -^ 

JV^o. 

rage 

J  o«'«M 

,9f 

riex 

Ko. 

Pii(ie 

U 

as  ii 

1       1  uck 

62 

10 

li 

as 

ill 

b  uncli 

160 

19 

U 

'      b  ud 

130 

17 

u 

a 

J  line 

119 

16 

u 

'     bl  lie 

42 

7 

u 

(( 

up 

40 

7 

u 

*    sn  ug 

120 

IG 

11 

(( 

c  11  rl 

127 

17 

ti 

'    en  oiigh 

129 

17 

u 

u 

li  usli 

154 

19 

u 

'      d  nil 

118 

16 

11 

a 

m  ust 

33 

6 

u 

'       j  ump 

80 

12 

u 

a 

but 

163 

20 

ti 

*      s  im 

41 

7 

Miscellaneous  Words  for  Application  and  Drill 


Vawel  Sounds 

.Vo. 

Page 

Vowel  Sounds 

JVb. 

Page 

short 

168 

20 

er 

185 

24 

long  (final  e) 

169 

20 

ie 

186 

24 

a, 

170 

21 

I 

187 

25 

at 

171 

21 

I 

188 

25 

9. 

172 

21 

I 

189 

25 

a 

173 

22 

ir 

190 

26 

31 

174 

22 

0 

191 

26 

ar 

175 

22 

6a 

192 

26 

au 

176 

22 

00 

193 

26 

aw 

177 

22 

6 

194 

26 

^ 

178 

23 

or 

195 

26 

au 

179 

23 

ou 

196 

27 

ge 

180 

23 

oi 

197 

27 

ea 

181 

23 

ti 

198 

■27 

6 

182 

24 

u 

199 

27 

6 

183 

24 

ti 

200 

27 

ea 

184 

24 

THE   PHONIC   CHART 


193 


Index  hy  Sounds 


aZ 


Series 

Voicela 

Series       Vo>c 

els       Series     Voti 

•els      Series 

Voicels 

Seri"* 

5 

ar 

35     6 

4    1 

11 

00 

31 

13 

67 

10 

12 

63 

27 

149 

19 

37 

137 

48 

150 

36 

44 

138 

79 

157 

47 

49 

193 

84 

175 

73 

52 

110 

99 

54 

6o 

16 

113 

au 

176 

108 

72 

123 

115 

117 

81 

143 

a 

6 

132 

82 

or 

39 

152 

109 

139 

93 

195 

161 

178 

141 

96 

170 

164 

126 

ou 

18 

au 

179 

182 

133 

65 

30 

183 

146 

87 

83 

aw 

34 

188 

196 

145 

131     ea     45 

189 

155 

177 

61 

- 

171 
14 

ee 

1 

25     e 

184    ^      I 
55         ^1 

15 

29 

139 

bb 

ow 

50 

17 

43 

148 

71 

100 

23 

53 

156 

106 
107 

128 

32 

74 

185 

57 

111 

121 

oy 

158 

55 

166     i 

20 

124 
135 

197 

59 

180 

22 

69 

26 

136 

u 

42 

91 

ea 

28 

68 

162 

119 

156 

56 

70 

191 

198 

165 

76 

78    6a         97 

u 

33 

167 

77 

94 

140 

40 

172 

90 

125 

144 

41 

102 

187 

192 

62 

21 

103 

80 

85 

105     1 

101    6     24 

118 

95 

122 

151 

38 

120 

153 

134 

190 

64 

130 

173 

147 
181 

66 
89 

154 
160 

174 

98 

163 

le 

186 

104 
112 
114 
159 
194 

a 

200 

127 
199 

[1] 


194 

] 

.p:aiining  to 

READ 

1 

2 

3 

pest 

bray 

s  ee 

fly 

old 

t  est 

tray 

be 

sky 

bold 

V  est 

str  ay 

b  ee 

by 

old 

e 

way 

m  e 

my 

bold 

5 

sw  ay 

he 

try 

fold 

say 

jay 

ye 

wh  y 

gold 

day 

st  ay 

sh  e 

sly 

in  old 

may 

a 

the 

cry 

s  old 

gay 

6 

w  e 

dry 

told 

hay 

all 

tr  ee 

bii  y 

o 

lay 

fall 

thr  ee 

pry 

4 

play 

hall 

fee 

spry 

n  est 

clay 

call 

flee 

fry 

b  est 

slay 

tall 

kn  ee 

ply 

w  est 

nay 

stall 

free 

wry 

rest 

pay 

ball 

1  ee 

shy 

cr  est 

ray 

w  all 

gl  ee 

sty 

ch  est 

dr  ay 

sm  all 

ee 

spy 

jest 

pray 

squ  all 

e 

y 

lest 
[2] 

gray 

a 

THE   PHONIC   CHART  196 


7 

9 

10 

pill 

si  ing 

fl  ew 

grow 

get 

spill 

.br  ing 

bl  ew 

bl  ow 

let 

sill 

spr  ing 

f  ew 

snow 

yet 

still 

str  ing 

h  ew 

low 

m  et 

rill 

k  ing 

(1  ew 

fl  ow 

n  et 

dr  ill 

th  ing 

m  ew 

si  ow 

j  6t 

skill 

sting 

new 

b  ow 

pet 

frill 

wring 

kn  ew 

tow 

set 

sbr  ill 

sw  ing 

p  ew 

m  ow 

w  et 

tr  ill 

i 

J  ew 

sow 

fret 

qu  ill 

13 

st  ew 

sh  ow 

e 

cb  ill 

m  ade 

8 

know 

11 

ill 

sli  ade 

gr  ew 

row 

will 

i 

spade 

br  ew 

cr  ow 

till 

12 

fade 

cr  ew 

tbr  ow 

fill 

s  ing 

w  ade 

dr  ew 

gl  ow 

bill 

w  ing 

tr  ade 

scr  ew 

st  ow 

hill 

r  ing 

gr  ade 

str  ew 

str  ow 

mill 

cl  ing 

bl  ade 

thr  ew 

0 

kill 

fling 

a 

[3] 


196 

L^A 

lRNing  to  ] 

READ 

14 

t  an 

17 

18 

shell 

gl  ad  . 

clan 

b  ack 

f  ound 

sm  ell 

h  ad 

D  an 

cr  ack 

b  onnd 

d\v  ell 

bad 

than 

J  ack 

r  ound 

dell 

brad 

pi  an 

pack 

gr  ound 

e 

fad 

van 

h  ack 

h  ound 

20 

lad 

an 

1  ack 

m  ound 

n  ight 

clad 

a 

bl  ack 

p  ound 

in  ight 

m  ad 

16 

si  ack 

sound 

r  ight 

pad 

look 

cl  ack 

ou 

br  ight 

s  ad 

took 

knack 

19 

f  ight 

sli  ad 

rook 

rack 

tell 

si  ight 

a 

cook 

tr  ack 

w  ell 

fl  ight 

15 

book 

s  ack 

fell 

s  ight 

c  an 

h  ook 

tack 

bell 

t  ight 

r  an 

nook 

stack 

svv  ell 

bl  ight 

m  an 

brook 

qn  ack 

cell 

pi  ight 

f  an 

crook 

wh  ack 

sell 

f  r  ight 

pan 

sh  ook 

sm  ack 

yell 

light 

span 

00 

a 

spell 

i 

THE 

PHONIC 

CHART 

197 

21 

23 

24 

26 

br  ake 

1  ast 

at 

long 

kite 

dr  ake 

fast 

h  at 

song 

wh  ite 

sli  ake 

past 

cat 

gong 

wr  ite 

flake 

bl  ast 

bat 

d  ong 

b  ite 

sn  ake 

cast 

fat 

pr  ong 

qu  ite 

a 

mast 

tat 

wr  ong 

s  ite 

28 

vast 

til  at 

str  ong 

sm  ite 

n  ear 

a 

ch  at 

o 

i 

h  ear 

22 

m  at 

26 

27 

sh  ear 

h  ide 

p  at 

feet 

w  ake 

d  ear 

side 

sp  at 

meet 

m  ake 

fear 

ride 

rat 

beet 

b  ake 

rear 

bride 

s  at 

sw  eet 

cake 

tear 

pr  ide 

vat 

gr  eet 

lake 

y  ear 

w  ide 

si  at 

fleet 

rake 

sp  ear 

t  ide 

flat 

sh  eet 

sake 

sm  ear 

gl  ide 

gn  at 

str  eet 

t  ake 

cl  ear 

slide 

plat 

sleet 

qu  ake 

ear 

i 

a 

ee 
[5] 

st  ake 

ea 

198 

LEARNING   TO   READ 

29 

sl  ain 

32 

34 

car 

feed 

pain 

and 

saw 

mar 

need 

m  ain 

1  and 

paw 

t  ar 

d  eed 

vain 

s  and 

caw 

jar 

b  eed 

ch  ain 

b  and 

jaw 

sc  ar 

s  eed 

train 

st  and 

law 

sp  ar 

w  eed 

str  ain 

str  and 

raw 

a 

reed 

dr  ain 

gr  and 

straw 

36 

gr  eed 

stain 

brand 

fl  aw 

bed 

f  r  eed 

Spain 

hand 

cl  aw 

red 

bl  eed 

spr  ain 

a 

draw 

Fred 

sp  eed 

ai 

33 

gnaw 

led 

ee 

31 

m  ust 

th  aw 

fled 

30 

s  oon 

j  ^ist 

d  aw 

sled 

r  ain 

m  oon 

gnst 

squ  aw 

bled 

pi  ain 

n  oon 

crust 

a 

Ned 

gr  ain 

spoon 

d  ust 

35 

fed 

br  ain 

loon 

r  ust 

star 

wed 

gain 

c  oon 

trust 

far 

sh  ed 

lain 

oo 

bar 

e 

THE  PHONIC   CHART  109 


37 

did 
hid 
bid 
kid 
lid 
r  id 
slid 

i 

38 

top 

st  op 

dr  op 

li  op 

1  op 

m  op 

pop 

sop 

cr  op 

pr  op 


sh  op 

41 

flop 

sun 

ch  op 

f  11  n 

str  op 

r  iin 

slop 

b  11  n 

0 

d  iin 

39 

gun 

m  orn 

nun 

b  orn 

p  un 

c  orn 

sp  un 

b  orn 

st  un 

sc  orn 

sli  un 

til  orn 

u 

o 

42 

40 

blue 

up 

d  ue 

c  np 

h  ue 

Slip 

s  lie 

pup 

c  ue 

u 

ue 

n 

43 

p  it 

p  eep 

tit 

d  eep 

fl  it 

k  eep 

si  it 

w  eep 

qii  it 

sw  eep 

grit 

steep 

spit 

cr  eep 

i 

sh  eep 

45 

si  eep 

h  ead 

ee 

d  ead 

44 

1  ead 

it 

read 

sit 

br  ead 

bit 

tr  ead 

fit 

dr  ead 

hit 

st  ead 

lit 

spr  ead 

m  it 

thr  ead 

w  it 

ea 

200 

LEARNING  TO 

READ 

46 

48 

tin 

51 

prig 

f  air 

c  arae 

win 

sh  one 

sprig 

air 

n  ame 

p  in 

st  one 

i 

h  air 

game 

ch  in 

b  one 

53 

1  air 

dame 

sp  in 

c  one 

s  een 

p  air 

fame 

skin 

drone 

green 

ch  air 

fl  ame 

.    gr  in 

hone 

qii  een 

stair 

same 

th  in 

tone 

scr  een 

ai 

tame 

twin 

zone 

ee 

47 

1  ame 

i 

o 

54 

w  ent 

bl  ame 

50 

52 

h  ini 

s  ent 

fr  ame 

d  own 

big 

dim 

b  ent 

sh  ame 

town 

dig 

rim 

d  ent 

a 

g  own 

fig 

brim 

c  ent 

49 

clown 

pig 

pr  im 

1  ent 

in 

brown 

wig 

tr  im 

r  ent 

b  in 

or  own 

rig 

sw  im 

t  ent 

d  in 

dr  own 

jig 

sk  im 

sp  ent 

fin 

fr  own 

twig 

si  im 

e 

sin 

ow 
[8] 

brig 

i 

THE  PHONIC 

CHART 

201 

55 

57 

1  ap 

cl  am 

0  ver 

hang 

y^^p 

cram 

cl  o  ver 

s  ang 

map 

tr  am 

D  0  ver 

bang 

n  ap 

sh  am 

Rover 

el  ang 

tap 

si  am 

dr  0  ver 

fang 

sap 

a 

0 

gang 

strap 

60 

56 

r  ang 

slap 

ought 

eat 

spr  ang 

snap 

th  ought 

b  eat 

si  ang 

trap 

br  ought 

li  eat 

tw  ang 

wrap 

b  ought 

ra  eat 

a 

a 

f  ought 

n  eat 

58 

59 

s  ought 

p  eat 

h  ap 

am 

ou 

s  eat 

rap 

sw  am 

61 

bl  eat 

cji  ap 

dam 

w  eath  er 

cli  eat 

clap 

ham 

f  eath  er 

tr  eat 

flap 

jam 

h  eath  er 

wli  eat 

gap 

ram 

1  eath  er 

ea 

cap 

S  am 

ea 

m 


202 

LEARNINC;   TO 

READ 

62 

64 

66 

67 

69 

1  lick 

rock 

n  ot 

h  ark 

th  ank 

st  uck 

cock 

lot 

d  ark 

b  ank 

(;1  uck 

bl  ock 

blot 

sp  ark 

bl  ank 

pi  uck 

f  r  ock 

c  ot 

b  ark 

cl  ank 

R  uck 

flock 

cl  ot 

m  ark 

crank 

t  uck 

lock 

dot 

p  ark 

dr  ank 

str  uck 

mock 

got 

1  ark 

fl  ank 

d  uck 

knock 

hot 

sh  ark 

fr  ank 

tr  uck 

stock 

jot 

a 

h  ank 

u 

sh  ock 

knot 

68 

1  ank 

63 

cr  ock 

pot 

h  ive 

pi  ank 

c  ool 

cl  ock 

pi  ot 

1  ive 

pr  ank 

fool 

sock 

rot 

dive 

rank 

sp  ool 

0 

shot 

five 

s  ank 

pool 

65 

si  ot 

str  ive 

sh  ank 

tool 

loud 

spot 

tlir  ive 

d  ank 

stool 

pr  oud 

tot 

al  ive 

sp  ank 

sch  ool 

cl  oud 

trot 

drive 

tank 

00 

ou 

0 

[10] 

i 

a 

70 

find 
k  ind 
bind 
h  ind 
mind 
w  ind 

r  ind 

gr  ind 

bl  ind 

i 

71 

r  ose 

tb  ose 

n  ose 

b  ose 

p  ose 

pr  ose 

cl  ose 

o 


THE 

PHONIC  en  Ail 

LT 

203 

72 

73 

75 

76 

cb  ick 

tb  en 

care 

east 

qu  ick 

b  en 

d  are 

1  east 

tick 

d  en 

b  are 

f  east 

Dick 

men 

b  are 

b  east 

kick 

p  en 

bl  are 

y  east 

lick 

ten 

fare 

ea 

n  ick 

wben 

fl  are 

77 

p  ick 

wr  en 

gl  are 

sp  eak 

s  ick 

e 

m  are 

creak 

w  ick 

74 

p  are 

squ  eak 

crick 

d  eer 

r  are 

w  eak 

stick 

peer 

stare 

beak 

prick 

b  eer 

sp  are 

bleak 

cl  ick 

cb  eer 

sb  are 

fr  eak 

br  ick 

jeer 

sn  are 

leak 

tr  ick 

sn  eer 

sc  are 

peak 

tb  ick 

qu  eer 

tare 

str  eak 

si  ick 

st  eer 

Av  are 

Avr  eak 

i 

ee 

a 

ea 

204 

LEARNING  TO 

READ 

78 

page 

81 

82 

83 

ice 

s  age 

th  ink 

tip 

s  ail 

m  ice 

st  age 

dr  ink 

sk  ip 

sn  ail 

d  ice 

w  age 

rink 

drip 

n  ail 

1  ice 

a 

1  ink 

slip 

bail 

n  ice 

80 

blink 

ch  ip 

fail 

price 

jump 

cl  ink 

cl  ip 

h  ail 

r  ice 

li  limp 

ch  ink 

d  ip 

jail 

si  ice 

b  limp 

si  ink 

gr  ip 

mail 

sp  ice 

cl  limp 

p  ink 

h  ip 

p  ail 

spl  ice 

d  ump 

m  ink 

lip 

rail 

thr  ice 

1  ump 

w  ink 

nip 

trail 

tr  ice 

pi  ump 

s  ink 

r  ip 

f  r  ail 

tw  ice 

pump 

t  ink 

s  ip 

tail 

vice 

r  ump 

br  ink 

sh  ip 

w  ail 

i 

si  ump 

shr  ink 

sn  ip 

qii  ail 

79 

st  ump 

prink 

trip 

flail 

age 

til  ump 

k  ink 

wh  ip 

vail 

c  age 

tr  ump 

ink 

pip 

ail 

rage 

u 

i 
[12] 

i 

ai 

THE 

PHONIC 

CHART 

205 

84 

pant 

rout 

89 

91 

gate 

rant 

st  out 

rob 

ash 

ate 

slant 

sp  out 

c  ob 

d  ash 

K  ate 

ch  ant 

sh  out 

bob 

flash 

late 

a 

sc  out 

fob 

crash 

fate 

86 

tr  out 

hob 

cl  ash 

gr  ate 

cried 

sn  out 

job 

h  ash 

h  ate 

died 

ou 

kn  ob 

1  ash 

ni  ate 

dried 

88 

m  ob 

m  ash 

pi  ate 

f  r  ied 

fl  ies 

sob 

s  ash 

rate 

lied 

skies 

o 

rash 

crate 

spied 

ties 

90 

sm  ash 

sk  ate 

tried 

dries 

reach 

trash 

si  ate 

tied 

dies 

peach 

a 

a 

ie 

fries 

pr  each 

92 

85 

87 

1  ies 

beach 

1  ove 

plant 

out 

sp  ies 

bl  each 

d  ove 

c  an't 

ab  out 

tr  ies 

teach 

sh  ove 

gr  ant 

g  out 

cr  ies 

each 

gl  ove 

ant 

p  out 

ie 
[13] 

ea 

o 

206 

LEARNING   TO 

READ 

93 

sh  ine 

rift 

99 

dirt 

this 

wh  ine 

sift 

wh  ence 

flirt 

miss 

th  ine 

gift 

th  ence 

girt 

h  iss 

tw  ine 

shift 

pence 

ir 

k  iss 

brine 

thr  ift 

fence 

102 

bliss 

i 

• 

1 

h  ence 

dream 

1 

95 

97 

e 

team 

94 

grass 

coat 

100 

b  eam 

fine 

pass 

goat 

how 

cr  eam 

pine 

mass 

b  oat 

bow 

gl  eam 

d  ine 

glass 

float 

cow 

ream 

k  ine 

lass 

0 

now 

s  eam 

line 

class 

98 

brow 

steam 

mine 

brass 

moss 

pi  ow 

ea 

nine 

ass 

toss 

mow 

103 

spine 

a 

boss 

ow 

leap 

tine 

96 

cr  oss 

101 

reap 

w  ine 

lift 

gloss 

sk  irt 

heap 

sw  ine 

swift 

loss 

sh  irt 

ch  eap 

vine 

drift 

0 

[14] 

squ  irt 

ea 

Tin 

i   PHONIC   ' 

CHART 

207 

104 

106 

108 

gale 

112 

log 

roll 

dress 

m  ale 

1  ost 

frog 

toll 

gu  ess 

s  ale 

c  ost 

bog 

poll 

bl  ess 

st  ale 

frost 

cog 

troll 

1  ess 

scale 

0 

d  og 

droll 

m  ess 

V  ale 

113 

fog 

str  oil 

press 

whale 

g  ave 

flog 

knoll 

e 

Yale 

s  ave 

hog 

0 

109 

a 

brave 

dog 

107 

w  alk 

111 

c  ave 

jog 

rove 

t  alk 

s  eek 

1  ave 

o 

stove 

balk 

p  eek 

pave 

105 

w  ove 

stalk 

cr  eek 

rave 

pea 

c  ove 

ch  alk 

ch  eek 

sh  ave 

s  ea 

cl  ove 

a 

Greek 

si  ave 

tea 

drove 

110 

1  eek 

w  ave 

1  ea 

gr  ove 

pale 

meek 

cr  ave 

fl  ea 

str  ove 

t  ale 

si  eek 

gr  ave 

pi  ea 

thr  ove 

bale 

w  eek 

kn  ave 

ea 

0 

d  ale 

[15] 

ee 

a 

208 

LEARNING   TO 

READ 

114 

117 

120 

pole 

124 

soft 

neck 

sn  ug 

wh  ole 

aw  oke 

loft 

d  eck 

dug 

sole 

sp  oke 

cr  oft 

p  eck 

bug 

0 

broke 

oft 

ch  eck 

hug 

122 

coke 

0 

fleck 

jug 

m  eal 

joke 

115 

speck 

lug 

steal 

poke 

t  aste 

e 

mug 

d  eal 

str  oke 

p  aste 

118 

pug 

heal 

sm  oke 

h  aste 

dull 

pi  ug 

seal 

ch  oke 

b  aste 

h  ull 

rug 

V  eal 

y  oke 

waste 

gull 

shr  ug 

w  eal 

woke 

a 

cull 

si  ug 

z  eal 

0 

116 

skull 

tug 

ea 

125 

w  ear 

u 

drug 

123 

life 

b  ear 

119 

u 

good 

w  ife 

sw  ear 

J  une 

121 

stood 

fife 

t  ear 

t  une 

h  ole 

h  ood 

kn  ife 

p  ear 

d  une 

stole 

w  ood 

str  ife 

ea. 

u 

mole 
[16] 

GO 

i 

THE 

PHONIC   CHART 

209 

126 

129 

132 

134 

137 

s  in  gle 

e  n  ougli 

end 

1  eave 

h  oot 

t  in  gle 

r  ough 

s  end 

w  eave 

b  oot 

ra  in  gle 

t  ough 

b  end 

cl  eave 

1  oot 

sh  in  gle 

ou 

bl  end 

h  eave 

root 

j  ill  gle 

130 

1  end 

ea 

s  oot 

i 

bud 

m  end 

135 

t  oot 

127 

ni  ud 

rend 

d  ome 

00 

c  url 

c  ud 

sp  end 

h  ome 

138 

furl 

sc  ud 

t  end 

gnome 

roof 

h  url 

u 

tr  end 

Rome 

h  oof 

u 

131 

e 

t  ome 

pr  oof 

128 

y  awn 

133 

0 

w  oof 

owl 

d  awn 

cliff 

136 

GO 

gr  owl 

f  awn 

stiff 

n  ote 

139 

c  owl 

1  awn 

skiff 

m  ote 

cl  ev  er 

f  owl 

p  awn 

sniff 

V  ote 

n  ev  er 

h  owl 

sp  awn 

wh  iff 

r  ote 

s  ev  er 

prowl 

brawn 

if 

wr  ote 

ev  er 

ow 

aw 

i 
[17] 

0 

e 

210 

LEARNING   TO   READ 

140 

143 

146 

149 

152 

oak 

bl  aze 

tw  ist 

h  ard 

c  ane 

cl  oak 

gl  aze 

m  ist 

y  ard 

V  ane 

cr  oak 

cr  aze 

fist 

1  ard 

b  ane 

s  oak 

graze 

grist 

b  ard 

1  ane 

oa 

h  aze 

list 

gu  ard 

ra  ane 

141 

^ 

h  ist 

card 

pane 

felt 

144 

i 

a 

pi  ane 

m  elt 

r  oar 

147 

150 

crane 

belt 

s  oar 

b  ean 

arm 

sane 

dw  elt 

b  oar 

m  ean 

f  arm 

w  ane 

kn  elt 

oar 

cl  ean 

h  arm 

a 

p  elt 

oa 

1  eari 

ch  arm 

153 

sp  elt 

143 

w  ean 

a 

ask 

e 

m  aid 

ea 

151 

b  ask 

142 

paid 

148 

girl 

c  ask 

eight 

1  aid 

f  ern 

wh  irl 

flask 

fr  eight 

raid 

stern 

tw  irl 

m  ask 

w  eight 

braid 

t  ern 

sw  irl 

t  ask 

ei 

ai 

er 

ir 

a 

[18] 


THE   PHONIC 

CHART 

211 

154 

156 

tart 

160 

h  ush 

m  at  ter 

d  art 

b  uncli 

br  usli 

1  at  ter 

ch  art 

1  unch 

cr  ush 

p  at  ter 

c  art 

m  uuch 

flush 

b  at  ter 

art 

cr  unch 

gush 

h  at  ter 

a 

h  unch 

mush 

sp  at  ter 

158 

p  unch 

plush 

ch  at  ter 

boy 

u 

rush 

cl  at  ter 

joy 

161 

si  ush 

pi  at  ter 

toy 

pi  ace 

bl  ush 

sc  at  ter 

coy 

pace 

thr  ush 

sh  at  ter 

Troy 

race 

u 

sm  at  ter 

oy 

brace 

156 

t  at  ter 

159 

trace 

faint 

a 

pond 

grace 

paint 

157 

fond 

face 

saint 

smart 

b  ond 

lace 

qu  aint 

start 

bl  ond 

m  ace 

taint 

p  art 

fr  ond 

sp  ace 

dd 

m  art 

o 

a 

[19] 


212 

LEARNING  TO 

READ 

162 

164 

p  eel 

168 

169 

own 

str  etch 

reel 

m  ad 

made 

kn  own 

wr  etch 

kn  eel 

rag 

rage 

sli  own 

sk  etch 

steel 

d  am 

d  ame 

in  own 

f  etch 

wh  eel 

c  an 

c  ane 

s  own 

etch 

ee 

c  ap 

c  ape 

str  own 

e 

167 

h  at 

li  ate 

gr  own 

165 

br  ag 

hid 

h  ide 

tbr  own 

c  atch 

flag 

mill 

m  ile 

bl  own 

scr  atch 

cr  asr 

d  im 

d  ime 

0 

h  atch 

dr  ag 

p  in 

p  ine 

163 

1  atch 

stag 

r  ip 

ripe 

but 

m  atch 

sn  ag 

bit 

b  ite 

c  ut 

patch 

slag 

r  ob 

r  obe 

hut 

sn  atch 

bag 

r  od 

rode 

n  ut 

a 

gag 

Tom 

t  ome 

rut 

166 

lag 

n  ot 

n  ote 

sh  ut 

feel 

rag 

h  op 

h  ope 

str  ut 

h  eel 

tag 

tub 

tube 

u 

k  eel 

a 
[20] 

c  ut 

cute 

THE  PHONIC   CHART 

213 

170— a 

171 -at 

172-a 

base 

aim 

fact 

c  a  se 

claim 

tax 

cli  a  se 

w  ai  t 

1  a  mb 

bathe 

daily 

c  a  mp 

la  the 

dairy 

shr  a  nk 

r  a  nge 

d  ai  sy 

wr  a  n  gle 

ch  a  nge 

r  ai  ny 

sad  die 

str  a  nge 

pi  ai  n  ly 

sh  a  d  o\v 

d  a  ix  ger 

d  ai  n  ty 

cr  a  ck  le 

man  ger 

f  ai  th 

h  a  nd  y 

str  a  n  ger 

pr  ai  se 

h  a  p  pen 

drape 

str  ai  ght 

thr  a  sh 

crape 

waist 

h  a  m  mer 

scr  a  pe 

waif 

st  a  g  ger 

c  able 

a  f  r  ai  d 

era  b 

table 

com  pi  ai  n 

st  a  nip 

st  a  ble 

ex  pi  ai  n 

g  a  th  er 

in  a  pie 

s  ai  1  or 

sea  Ip 

st  a  pie 

j  ai  1  er 
[21] 

ban  ner 

214 


LEARNING  TO  READ 

173 -a 

175  — ar 

176 -au 

b  a  th 

b  ar  n 

au  nt 

p  a  til 

yarn 

d  ail  nt 

d  a  nee 

st  ar  ve 

fi  au  nt 

gl  a  nee 

searf 

g  an  nt 

el  asp 

tardy 

h  au  nt 

grasp 

h  ar  dly 

j  aunt 

1  a  st  ly 

barb 

taunt 

V  a  st  ly 

sharp 

V  au  nt 

era  ft 

gii  ar  d 

1  au  nch 

sh  aft 

st  ar  eh 

s  au  nt  er 

mas  ter 

eh  ar  ge 

h  au  ncli 

pi  a  s  ter 

m  ar  ket 

177 -aw 

174 -a? 

harsh 

h  aw  k 

calf 

marsh 

squ  aw  k 

half 

hart 

d  aw  die 

e  al  ves 

sn  ar  1 

awl 

h  al  ves 

d  ar  ling 

sh  aw  1 

c  al  m 

f  ar  m  er 

f  aw  n 

pal  m 

alarm 
[22] 

awe 

THE  PHONIC  CHART 

215 

178  — a 

179  —  au 

181  — ea 

w  a  rm 

c  ail  gilt 

str  ea  m 

w  a  rm  er 

t  ail  gilt 

t  ea  ch  er 

w  a  rmth 

p  ail  se 

squ  ea  1 

sw  a  rm 

c  au  so 

y  ea  r  ly 

w  ard 

cl  au  se 

dr  ea  r 

sw  a  th 

d  au  b 

dr  ea  r  y 

w  a  Itz 

f  au  It 

glea  n 

w  a  nt 

d  ail  gli  ter 

wr  ea  th 

war 

n  au  gh  ty 

br  ea  the 

war  ble 

s  au  ce 

pi  ea  se 

w  a  rn 

s  au  cer 

ease 

wh  a  rf 

s  au  cy 

leaf 

wh  a  rves 

180  — ee 

1  ea  ves 

s  alt 

b  ee  cli 

r  ea  d 

sc  a  Id 

b  ee  f 

r  ea  son 

w  art 

s  ee  m 

tr  ea  son 

dw  a  rf 

fi  ee  ce 

cr  ea  se 

a  1  ter 

br  ee  ze 

eagei 

f  a  1  ter 

t  ee  th 
[23] 

eagle 

216 

LEARNING   TO   READ 

182  — e 

183-6 

185-gr 

egg 

left 

h  er 

1  e  ngth 

th  e  ft 

h  er  s 

cr  e  pt 

e  dge 

h  er  d 

e  Ise 

w  e  dge 

h  erb 

d  e  nse 

b  e  neb 

p  er  ch 

d  e  pth  . 

wr  e  nch 

s  er  ve 

d  e  sk 

flesh 

t  er  m 

st  e  p 

thr  e  sh 

V  er  ge 

he  Ip 

tw  e  Ifth 

186  — ?e 

st  e  m 

str  e  ngth  en 

brie  f 

held 

184  — ea 

ch  ie  f 

web 

d  ea  th 

th  ie  f 

p  e  b  ble 

br  ea  th 

fie  Id 

r  eb  el 

sw  ea  t 

sh  ie  Id 

tw  e  Ive 

st  ea  d  y 

y  ie  Id 

t  e  nth 

m  ea  d  ow 

niece 

shelf 

m  ea  s  lire 

pier 

next 

pl  ea  s  lire 

p  ie  rce 

m  e  d  die 

tr  ea  s  ure 

f  ie  rce 

[24] 


187  —  1 


wh 

ile 

sm 

ile 

r 

ipe 

str 

i  pe 

s 

ign 

tr 

i  be 

fr] 

gilt  en 

br  ] 

ght  en 

cr  ] 

ime 

ch 

i  me 

sp  i 

re 

qu  i 

re 

S] 

gh 

spi 

ke 

m 

ild 

s  i 

ze 

pr  i 

ze 

r  ] 

L  se 

w  i 

se 

THE   PHONIC   CHART 

188  —  1 

189- i 

pr  i  nt 

str  i  p 

w  i  tch 

wr  i  st 

r  i  cl  die 

s  i  s  ter 

m  i  clg  et 

scr  i  pt 

qu  i  It 

r  i  nse 

wr  i  g  gle 

w  i  dth 

tr  i  g  ger 

cri  b 

br  i  t  tie 

br  i  dge 

wr  i  t  ten 

i  nch 

pity 

cri  mp 

gr  i  m 

gl  i  mpse 

gl  i  m  mer 

f  r  i  nore 

s  i  ik 

cr  i  sp 

pr  i  nee 

br  isk 

m  i  X 

d  i  sli 

d  i  m  pie 

f  i  Im 

spr  i  n  kle 

filth 

pr  i  c  kle 

sw  i  tch 

cr  i  ck  et 

spl  i  nt 

217 


[25] 


218 

LEARNING  TO   READ 

190— ir 

192— oa 

194-6 

fir 

road 

trod 

f  ir  m 

loaf 

lodge 

f  ir  st 

1  oa  ves 

pr  0  mpt 

th  ir  d 

oa  th 

fl  0  ss 

b  ir  th 

soap 

cr  0  tch 

b  ir  ch 

oats 

clo  th 

sh  ir  k 

thr  oa  t 

tongs 

ch  ir  p 

gr  oan 

yon  der 

th  ir  ty 

f  oa  m 

be  y  0  nd 

th  ir  teen 

c  oa  rse 

p  0  ck  et 

191—5 

goal 

195— or 

si  0  pe 

b  oa  st 

n  or 

gl  0  be 

b  oard 

c  or  d 

p  0  st 

193— 5b 

stork 

bolt 

r  00  st 

storm 

r  0  de 

goo  se 

sh  or  t 

p  0  rch 

shoot 

sc  or  ch 

spo  rt 

poor 

b  or  der 

w  0  rn 

st  00  p 
[26] 

c  or  ner 

THE  PHONIC   CHART 

219 

196— ou 

198 -u 

200 -u 

h  oil  r 

cu  be 

d  usk 

m  ou  th 

cu  re 

tuft 

spr  ou  t 

duke 

p  u  z  zle 

shr  ou  d 

dupe 

cr  u  m  ble 

m  ou  nt 

plume 

thr  u  st 

f  ou  n  tain 

mule 

sup  per 

h  ou  se 

due 

p  u  p  py 

c  ou  ch 

u  se 

dr  u  g  gist 

ounce 

199— ur 

m  u  mps 

197— oi 

burn 

judge 

oil 

spur 

pi  u  nge 

spoil 

surf 

cr  u  mb 

V  oi  ce 

b  ur  st 

cr  u  tch 

ch  oi  ce 

ch  ur  ch 

sw  u  ng 

join 

c  ur  b 

bl  u  nt 

coin 

c  ur  d 

stuff 

j  oint 

p  ur  se 

fl  u  t  ter 

m  oi  st 

c  ur  ve 

pud  die 

n  oise 

h  urt 
[27] 

th  u  n  der 

